


Rock, Scissors, Paper

by Heichous_Poncho



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: College AU, Cuddles, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, Kisses, M/M, Multi, Reincarnation themes, also sexual tension, based off a tumblr prompt, cute shit like that, eren and levi being lil shits, hero!eren, hero/villain au, how does one tag, kinda violent, like there are fight scenes, no srsly how do i tag, thief!levi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-04-13
Updated: 2016-07-25
Packaged: 2018-03-22 15:22:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 45,392
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3733807
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Heichous_Poncho/pseuds/Heichous_Poncho
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><br/>Some freshman at Trost University end up having to room with seniors when their dorms start having plumbing problems, and Eren, a vigilante with terrible luck, just happens to get stuck with the most disagreeable roommate ever, an asshole named Levi. When he comes back from another night of vaulting around Shiganshina’s rooftops and fighting with the ridiculously agile thief he’s met nearly every night for two years, he finds an injured Levi, and the fact that he’s just as banged up doesn’t help. They reach an agreement to help each other with everything silently, but one little detail keeps escaping their notice… they’re fighting each other! Sucks to be falling in love when you’re playing a game like this, doesn’t it?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue- Across the Line

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! Enjoy the product of overactive imagination and mutual love of this fandom.

Eren flung himself forward, his heart pounding in his ears, adrenaline surging through him.

  
_Shit! Can I make it? I have to make it!_

  
His foot touched the edge and he threw himself forward, stumbling onto the opposing rooftop and mentally congratulating himself.

  
_No, dammit! I can’t think like that now! I have to keep running!_

  
After all, Eren was chasing someone.

  
He spotted the flash of the green cloak as the shorter figure sailed forward and disappeared over the edge of the next rooftop. Eren ran, threw caution to the wind, as he raced across the dark, damp surface and leapt over the next gap.

  
The cloaked figure was gone, and as always, all that was left was a single black feather.

  
Eren punched the vent next to him, nearly shaking with rage. Always, forever, no matter what he did, he couldn’t catch that asshole. It had been years, months, days, of fruitless running and leaping with his heart pounding in his ears and his sneakers pattering across the hard surfaces of concrete and asphalt.

  
But all he ever caught in his hands were feathers, sometimes white, mostly black. Once he had nearly caught the edge of the cloak, felt heavy, rough emerald fabric brush his finger tips, but that was as close as Eren’d gotten when he wasn’t furiously fighting him.

  
You see, Eren was a vigilante college student who spent his nights slaving over term papers and art projects half the time, and tried to clean the scum out of Shiganshina with any hours left. The man in the green cloak, though... Eren didn’t know what to think of him. He wasn’t a murderer, an abuser, a drug dealer; in fact, Eren didn’t think someone like the man called Cramoisi wanted to be near filth like that. After all, every time Eren had seen him or fought with him, his appearance was impeccable.

  
All Cramoisi ever did was steal. One jewelry store after another, like clockwork every week. Eren got there before the cops each time, and sometimes they engaged in a deathly dance of kicks and punches. But soon enough, Cramoisi always scuttled up the fire escapes or scaled the buildings, soaring over the rooftops like some kind of bird. It was fitting. After all, he dropped feathers as a calling card and wore a black crow mask, lined with blood red.

  
Eren scoffed. He was done for the night. He’d see that cloaked figure again next Friday or Saturday, without fail. Maybe next time, he could catch him.

  
_Maybe next time_ , Eren thought as he clambered down the rickety fire escape and slowly made his way back to Trost University, his head hanging low and heartbeat slowing down.


	2. Chapter 1- Waiting for the End

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren and Levi finally meet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written by Chrome, edited by ImplicitAmbiguity.
> 
> I am totally blown away by the response to this! Thank you for kudos, comments, and bookmarks.
> 
> Ready?

Levi drummed his fingers with great annoyance on his small dinner table. He glanced at the time on his shitty microwave.

_3:10_

The brat was late by ten minutes. Levi rolled his eyes and picked up his phone to cancel the meeting, but there was a knock on the door. The chair he was sitting in groaned as he stood, and the floor squeaked as he made his way to the apartment door. He pulled over a small stepping stool and reluctantly stepped on it to look through the peephole.

Sure enough, there was a kid outside his door with messy brown hair and a red jacket. Levi glanced around his place once more, making sure everything was in place and orderly. His tiny kitchen was clean to the right of him and the bedrooms prepared were spotless. His couch had managed not to look broken and his TV was dusted clean. The boy outside knocked on the door again and Levi sighed. _Goodbye, solitary living. I’ll miss you_.

Levi moved his stool and wrenched the open the unreasonably heavy door. His eyes took in the form in front of him: tall, golden tan skin, Caribbean orbs that graced his face, unruly almond brown locks that flopped in each direction, and a crooked smile that had Levi melting inside. Maybe living with this guy wouldn’t be so bad, Levi thought.

“Hi! I’m Eren Jaeger, the one who called about having to move in with a senior and seeing your ad. Uh, do you want to go get coffee while we talk?” He offered a nervous grin, extended a friendly hand, and Levi felt his heart stop for a moment.

But just a moment. It started again and Levi cursed himself for getting so worked up. “No. I hate coffee shops,” Levi replied monotonously. He glared at Eren’s hand until the other grew self conscious enough to pull it back. “I can brew some.”

With that, he turned on his heel and walked to his right. Eren stood in the doorway, unsure whether or not to come in. Levi clicked his tongue and called out to him. “Oi, you coming in or what? I do have other things to be doing; I don’t have time to babysit you.”

Somewhere in the logical part of his brain, Levi was pleading with himself to stop being a dick to the guy- to Eren.

“Hey, no need to be an asshole,” Eren retorted. He followed Levi into the small kitchen and sat at the dinner table while Levi prepared the coffee.

“It’s in my nature.”

Eren rolled his eyes and sighed. “So can I still move in?” Levi reached up to his cabinets to pull out two coffee mugs and began to talk.

“If you can put up with my terms then sure.” He poured out the coffee and strode over to the table. He handed Eren his mug and began to sit down.

“Oh um, do you have any sugar? Or cream? I don’t drink it black,” Eren hastily asked.

“Don’t have any. I’m lactose intolerant; I can’t have any dairy. Sugar makes my face break out.” There was a pause of awkward silence between them and Levi suddenly spoke out again. “Do you want a piece of cheesecake?”

“Cheesecake?” Eren asked, bewildered. Levi smirked and walked over to his refrigerator and pulled out a slice for himself. He rummaged around a drawer and produced two forks. “But didn’t you say that you were lactose intolerant?”

“I am,” Levi said in all seriousness before he took a rather large chunk of the cheesecake and placed it on his tongue. He watched the muted anger in Eren’s eyes flare again.

“You’re such an asshole.”

“M’kay,” Levi said after he swallowed the piece of dessert. Truthfully, he wasn’t lactose intolerant, and he ate more sugar than necessary, but he would take any chance to mess with Eren.

“Okay, so what are your damn rules?” Eren sighed, visibly agitated.

“Open a new note on your phone because this will be long.” Eren fumbled with his phone for a second but was able to get a notes page up before Levi started.

“Alright, first off: space. You’ll have your own room, so keep all your shit there. The living area is allowed to you as well as the kitchen. Don’t use the stove or oven unless I’m here; they like to act up and cause small fires. The TV has basic channels because I can’t afford cable. Second: noise. If you’re going to listen to music, wear a fucking pair of headphones, be fucking quiet, and don't sing along. I’m a senior, meaning that I have more things to study for and I can’t listen to music or I get distracted. So no music.”

“What about in the mornings? Like when you get ready?” Eren asked, looking a little crestfallen.

“Did I fucking stutter? No blasting your goddamn music.” Eren sighed and motioned for Levi to continue. “Third: cleaning. Sundays, Wednesdays, and Fridays are cleaning days. That means that every Sunday, Wednesday, and Friday, we will clean the apartment. And to my standards. I’ll show you how tonight if you decide to stay since it’s Friday. Fourth: boundaries. You have no fucking right to go into my room for any occasion unless I explicitly ask you to. Same goes for my tea leaves in the cabinets and my personal cleaning closet.

“Those are the main four, but there are some others. Since I am broke as fuck, if you get yourself in trouble I’m probably not going to help you out. Pay for your own shit and I’ll pay for mine. Don’t throw any goddamn parties in here; it’s shitty enough as is. I’m part of a lot of study groups so I’ll be out late most nights. I don’t give a shit what you do while I’m gone, just don’t break any of my rules and keep the place clean. And last thing: if you want to jack off, do it over the toilet because I’d rather not step into a shower where your semen has coated the floor.”

Eren sat glued to his chair with his mouth open in embarrassment and surprise. “You are…”

“An asshole? A dick? A fucker? A short ass shrimp? I’ve heard them all before,” Levi said airily, waving his hand.

“Well, yes… but you’re also incredibly blunt.” Eren admitted. Levi shrugged his shoulders and took a long sip of his black coffee.

“How can you drink that black?” Eren cringed.

“I’m not a wimp.” Levi stated, leveling his glare at Eren. The guy was cute but the more they talked, the more Levi managed to (tried to) convince himself Eren wasn’t his type. “So, are you going to move in or not?”

“Like right now?”

“Sure! Let me just take those bags that you don’t have,” Levi replied sarcastically. “How about by 7:00 tonight, dumbass? I should be studying in my room, but if you knock loud enough, I’ll be able to hear.”

Eren rolled his eyes and nodded. “So do I get a tour?”

Levi jerked his head to the left. “That’s the living space over there. We’re in the kitchen and there is an adjourning bathroom between our rooms which are behind the living space wall. My door is black, yours is white.”

“Okay. Then I’ll be back at 7.” Eren stood from the table and grabbed his phone. “Thanks for the shitty coffee and attitude,” he called back to Levi with a hint of anger in his voice.

“No problem, dumbass. By the way, the name’s Levi.”

“Alright. Thanks for being an asshole too, Levi,” Eren snapped before throwing the door open and letting it slam behind him as he stormed away.

Levi sat silently for a moment before groaning and letting his head bang against the table. “I’m such an idiot. Fuck.” He groaned again, this time louder than before. Levi dragged his face against the wooden table and looked wearily toward the microwave’s clock.

_4:56_

He’d have to start cooking dinner for himself and Eren soon. Unwillingly, Levi forced himself from the table and opened the refrigerator. Inside was a carton of milk, some eggs, day old ramen, and some casserole Hanji had made for him. Not enough for two people. Wait, **four** people; Levi cursed as he remembered that he had to go to Farlan’s place and bring along dinner before he and his girlfriend Isabel starved. It looked like he’d have to take a trip to the market and then go on a raid later that night.

“Fuck my life,” he muttered as he slammed the door shut. Levi marched out of the kitchen to his room to grab a grey jacket quickly. In the process, he accidentally knocked over a vase of silky black and white feathers.

“Shit,” he swore as he bent down to pick up the fallen feathers. He took the vase to his personal cleaning closet and placed it on the highest shelf that he could reach, right next to his emerald green cloak and black crow mask.

Levi quickly closed the closet door and practically ran to the apartment door. He opened it and slipped out silently, being sure to lock it after he left.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As before, please say what you thought of this chapter! The next one is written, but Implicit hasn't responded, so you have to wait a bit! Thank you!


	3. Chapter 2- Papercut

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The events that led to Eren and Levi's meeting, a little more interaction, and the full arrival of Eren's hero half!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Written by Chrome. Somewhat fillerish...?
> 
> Edited by ImplicitAmbiguity. Thank you for your comments and kudos!

<It's like I'm paranoid, lookin' over my back!>

Eren trudged to his old dorm, muttering curses under his breath.

_That short, frickin’ asshole- If I could live with someone nice, or with Armin or Mikasa, I would! Ugh…_

It was near seven now, as Eren had been wasting his time at a coffee shop with Ymir and Krista. He was dreading going back and dealing with the little bastard, but he continually reminded himself that he had no choice.

He reached Trost’s freshman housing and wrinkled his nose as he stepped inside. The disgusting smell that had resulted from the plumbing problems still hadn’t left. The ground was still damp from the flooding, which was even worse. All Eren wanted to do was find Armin, who had all his stuff… or what was left of it. Eren groaned as he remembered what he’d woken up to this morning.

_**He was flying, swinging forward through the trees. Up ahead was someone else, someone smaller, a green cloak trailing in the wind behind them.** _

_**It was a very familiar sight.** _

_**Eren looked down, gasping. He wore the same green cloak.** _

_But I’m not-!_

_**The shorter figure swung up into a tree and alighted on a thick branch. He turned, and over his face was the crow mask, not matching the rest of his… uniform? Blood dripped from his sole visible eye.** _

“Captain-!”

_**There was a sharp knocking sound, the edges of the dream became hazy and blurred, and Eren startled awake…** _

“Eren! Eren, get up! Oh no, Mikasa, break down the door or something! He’s not waking up!”

“…eh… Ar…? What’s going on? And why does it smell terrible? OH, SHIT!”

There was at least three inches of dark water flowing over the ground, but from the stench, Eren knew it wasn’t mud making the water brown. And almost all his stuff not on shelves or on the desks was saturated with it.

“No! NO! My art projects, shit- my clothes! Oh my fucking- why me?!”

Eren stumbled out of bed, barely avoiding falling into the sludge, and scrambled to his desk, grabbing his laptop and its charger, which thankfully was wrapped up and sitting next to it instead of on the floor. He snatched his bulky school backpack and then the smaller one that held his other identity before stumbling to the door, sloshing through the mixture and nearly crying because of how terrible everything was already.

He flung it open to see Mikasa and Armin, the former with her red scarf wrapped around the lower half of her face to block the smell. Both of them were wearing boots, so the sludge hadn’t done to them what it had to Eren. Other people were rushing through the dorm hallways, and Eren saw Jean Kirstein nearly trip and fall, crashing into a wall. It would’ve made him laugh if he wasn’t feeling like Sasha Blouse right now. Connie Springer was carrying the wailing girl over his shoulder as she sobbed and tried reaching toward her room. From the sound of it, the sewage had somehow gotten inside her mini fridge.

He shoved his things into Armin’s arms and took back off to see what he could salvage. Only a few shirts and two pairs of jeans in the small closet weren’t on the floor and thus not ruined. After picking them up, he ran toward his bed and then started grabbing for the blankets and sheets. Mikasa came up behind him and took the pile of sheets and clothes, carting them off as Eren frantically looked back and forth. He snatched up his sketchbook and sets of graphite and colored pencils before deciding he needed to get out of there already.

Armin had shouldered his smaller bag. Eren tucked his art supplies under his arm and took over the other one as they made their way out of the dorms. The entirety of the dorm residents were outside on the grass, all with bags and piles of clothes, much like the trio. Mikasa silently led them toward Krista Lenz, who was waiting beside her scowling girlfriend, Ymir. The two extra piles next to them had to belong to Armin and Mikasa.

The rest of their friend group sat scattered around Ymir and Krista. Marco Bodt looked on the verge of tears. Jean asked him what was wrong, and Marco sheepishly admitted that his laptop had been on the floor, and was now destroyed. Sasha was still mourning her fridge. Annie Leonhardt kicked her sole briefcase over and sneered at it. Her friends Reiner Braun and Bertholt Hoover edged away from her, and Bertholt sweated more than normal.

That was all that happened before Professors Shadis and Pixis arrived and announced that the freshmen would dorm with some seniors who had put out ads saying they would accept roommates. That was how Eren had ended up meeting Levi, after he had liberally abused a shower in another dorm.

He wandered down the hall and called out.

“Ar? Where- Oh.” On Armin’s former door was a little note that said, _“Eren, your stuff is sitting on my bed. I moved out already; sorry!”_

Eren grumbled and walked into Armin’s room, noting the water and property damage. At least he hadn’t suffered like Marco, who had three papers to rewrite, last Eren heard. He picked up his bags and sheets, which Armin had packed neatly for him, hefted the bundles, and made his way back to Levi’s tiny apartment. As he crossed the grounds, a cold wind blew. The last vestiges of light were fading. Eren felt shivers crawl up his spine and looked over his shoulder. He spotted a flash of a white cloak with a red logo on the back before it seemed to vanish.

“What’s going on… hmm…” Eren clenched his teeth and walked faster.

The paranoia and the feeling of being watched never vanished.

 

* * *

 

Eren arrived at Levi’s apartment and kicked at the door in place of knocking. He heard Levi swear from inside and a clatter.

“Shit, not again… these fucking-”

Whatever he said next became muffled and indistinct. Eren frowned as he heard a solid thunk and then a door slamming before Levi stalked over and flung the door open. There was a cloth tied around the lower half of his face, he was carrying a broom in one hand, and he looked royally pissed. Eren sniffed the air. He recognized the scent of bleach, and underneath was the smell of pasta sauce and chicken. He’d seemingly cooked, then cleaned.

“Dumbass, are you going to stand in the doorway all day, or is your ass going to come in? I’m busy.” Eren gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to slam Levi upside the head with his $200 dollar textbook filled bag.

“I’m coming, asshole.” Levi snorted and moved back so Eren could step in and shut the door behind him. He then turned and untied the cloth, setting the broom aside so he could slip it off his face. As much as Eren felt like smacking the man, he had to admire his sharp features and icy blue-grey eyes. His black hair stood out in sharp contrast to his porcelain skin. Levi was actually really ho-

Eren needed to stop.

“I was putting away my cleaning supplies. I told you I’d show you how I clean today, but I snapped and did it early. Just look and you’ll see the standards, though. Anything less and your ass gets thrown out of here. I hate messes. Clear?”

“Absolutely fucking crystal,” Eren huffed, lugging his things over to the living area Levi had indicated earlier. Sure enough, one door was glossy black and the other was plain white. Eren opened the white door. Inside was a small area with a mattress on a bed frame, a tiny desk, and a bookcase. They were all worn and the wood of the desk and shelves was chipped, having been liberally used. But thanks to Levi’s obsessive cleaning tendencies, they were all spotless and dust free.

Eren set down his bags and unrolled the sheets and blankets so he could place them on the bare mattress. He heard Levi curse and kick something from the other room and tilted his head questioningly. What did he keep doing that for? It seemed every other moment he found something to be irritated with.

The boy shook his head and unpacked his textbooks and laptop, setting the books carefully on the shelf and positioning his laptop on the desk. He fondly looked at the design embossed on the front, an image of two phoenixes, one deep blue and one gray. Their wings were crossed in the middle above a gold shield. Eren had designed it a very long time ago, when he was about four. He’d redrawn it years later and found it well done, so he made his custom laptop display the design.

He folded his clothes and set them on the shelf, since this room for some reason didn’t have a closet. Eren looked around. He wondered if he showed Levi his art, he’d persuade the senior to let him paint the walls. They were so plain.

 _Painting…_ Eren cringed as he remembered he had to redo two ruined art projects. He’d though Marco had it bad with his assignments, but Eren could never paint unless he was significantly inspired.

And only one thing inspired him; fighting Cramoisi.

Eren let out a small groan. He’d known he’d have to go out tonight and fight the man, since it and been a week since he last met, but how was he going to sneak around Levi?

“Fuck…” Eren grumbled. “Fine, fine, I just have to wait it out… just a bit… and then I can go.” He gingerly stowed away the bag with the hero “Justitiam” sealed in it under the bed, hoping that Levi wouldn’t find the need to clean under there anytime soon.

“Oi! Dumbass! Get in here if you want food, because there isn’t anything else but shitty ramen, two eggs, and questionable casserole in the fucking fridge!” Levi called from the kitchen.

“Coming!” Eren responded, hastily getting to his feet and stumbling out of the room, letting the door drift shut behind him.

 

* * *

 

Eren fidgeted and looked at his watch.

_1:29 AM_

He breathed out slowly. Surely Levi had fallen asleep now. He seemed neurotic enough to not mess up his sleep schedule, even for classes.

Eren slipped out of bed and ducked down, reaching for his bag. He froze when he heard a squeak and sat back for a minute; the only sound in the silence now was his harsh breathing. Slowly, his hand crept under the bed and closed around the bag. With practiced ease, he drew it out and changed into the outfit it contained. He was clad in all black now, except for the gold shield symbols on his inner wrists and the gold lining on his winged eye mask.

Without looking, as he’d done for months, Eren pulled out contacts and placed them in his eyes. This particular pair of contacts was special. They not only turned his eyes from blue-green to solid gold, but were augmented to improve his night vision. It was handy to be the son of a rich, powerful couple in the medical world.

Eren crept out of the room after arranging the blankets in an Eren shaped lump. Levi’s door was closed, and the apartment was eerily dark. Eren maneuvered around the stepping stool his roommate had to stand on and quickly unlocked the door. Looking over his shoulder, he soundlessly slipped through the door and out of the complex.

Turning his face toward the sky, Eren watched the stars twinkle before he sighed and moved on. The cool night breeze ruffled his hair as he loped into an alley and climbed up a fire escape. He pulled himself up a window ledge and then swung up onto the roof.

_Why do I get the feeling getting onto a roof should be easier? Like I should have cables or ropes or something… every time I’ve done this it feels familiar, but **wrong** somehow. But isn’t protecting people and taking care of things what I’ve always done?_

Eren shook his head and took off across the roof. As he neared the edge, he leapt and soared onto the opposite roof, not losing any momentum.

Absentmindedly, he wondered what kind of things he would see tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How was that? I'm iffy on it...
> 
> Thanks for reading!


	4. Chapter 3- You're Goin' Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While out on his run, "Justitiam" encounters "Cramoisi," and a chase and battle ensue!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter by Chrome. Thank Chibi for the assist.
> 
> Your response is motivating! Thank you!
> 
> EDIT: So Chibinico and I found out that "Crimoisi" isn't even a word in French, much less what it was supposed to be, "Crimson." Sorry to those who speak French for the error with your language. It's been changed to the accurate translation now... I think...

 <One of us is goin’… one of us is goin’ down!>

“Hm… quiet here. Guess I’ll take the usual route.” Eren mumbled, surveying the streets of Shiganshina.

Eren’s “usual route” was a simple circuit around the city. He’d done it so many times by now that he had the stamina to do it more than once in one night. Taking a deep breath, he began running again.

Hopping from building to building, the vigilante observed the ground. The only active places this time of night were clubs, and nothing unusual seemed to be happening near there. Inside some of them, there were probably drug deals going on, but Mikasa had explicitly told him that unless he spotted it from the sky, he wasn’t to bother with problems. It was slightly infuriating, but he knew he still managed a great deal of help working like this.

From his place on a ledge, Eren suddenly heard the piercing sound of an alarm. Turning his gaze toward the row of shops opposite him, he realized that the alarm was from a little jewelry shop, Diamond Dust. One of its windows was shattered, and inside, Eren spotted a flash of green.

_Found him! Shit- where can I-_

Eren growled in rage when he realized the building he stood on didn’t have any ladders or fire escapes. He was too high up to even consider jumping off the edge.

_But if I don’t move, he’ll get away!_

Eren tracked the small figure as it darted out of the shop and scrambled- up the side of the opposing building?!

_What the fuck?! He has gloves that can grip stone strongly enough that he can climb a fucking vertical wall! Damn! I have to track him from the opposite side and then corner him when he comes back down!_

Eren took off and vaulted over the dizzying drop that led into an alley before racing over the next rooftop. His blood was burning in his veins, and his heart was beating so strongly he could hear it. Every so often, he threw a glance over to check on Cramoisi’s progress. They were running at the same rate, but Cramoisi hadn’t noticed him yet. There were many benefits to wearing an all black uniform.

He sought the man again and realized he’d dropped down a fire escape and into another alley. By now, they were close to Trost University, and Eren swore softly. Hopefully, no one that could potentially recognize him had been out clubbing tonight and was returning late.

Eren put on a burst of speed and caught up to the man, who whipped around and aimed a roundhouse kick at him before Eren was even close enough to connect.

_Ugh, he has really good senses and reflexes! But so do I!_

Eren danced away and aimed an inner crescent kick at his head. Cramoisi ducked under his leg and punched him squarely in the solar plexus. The boy fell onto his back but turned it into a somersault and landed on his feet. Even though he was winded, he wouldn’t give up, because Eren loved the feeling of adrenaline and fighting too much. It gave him purpose, made him feel like he was really alive.

Cramoisi was watching him, the breeze tugging on the ends of his inky hair. “You don’t give up, do you? Shouldn’t you be staying down?”

Eren gasped. This was the first time the other had ever spoken to him. His voice was quiet and smooth. Eren found it irritatingly familiar, but he couldn’t place it. He narrowed his eyes. “What’s the point of giving up? I’ve fought you before!”

“But you’ve never truly won.” Cramoisi mocked, dropping the bag with whatever he’d stolen and dropping into a fighting stance. Eren scowled, adopting his own stance before trying to throw a return punch.

“Neither have you!”

_One of us has to go down!_

His opponent grabbed his arm, and dropping to his knees, flung Eren over his shoulder.

_When did he start using Akido?!_

Eren gritted his teeth and swept out his arm to hit the back of Cramoisi’s knees, using the uneven terrain and the fact that the other had just stood to knock him down too. The man let out a hiss of shock as his head hit the ground. When he turned, his visible eye filled with pain and anger, Eren noticed that a stone had sliced open his temple. The gash bled into his mask and soaked his hair.

Before Eren could blink, his opponent shot up and wrapped a hand around his throat, slamming Eren into the ground. His vision went fuzzy and dark spots obscured his view of the sky. He was dimly aware of Cramoisi grabbing his bag and running off.

 _Ugh…_ Eren sat upright and wheezed, shaking his head to clear it.

“Fuck! Again!” He slapped the ground with his palm, trembling.

But Eren couldn’t shake the sound of Cramoisi’s voice out of his head, nor could he forget this was the closest he’d ever been to him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, commenting, and leaving kudos!


	5. Chapter 4- Do I Wanna Know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi has a tough night after his encounter with Justitiam, but each day's a new day... right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Super happy with the response for this little fic. Hope you guys like this chapter as well!!
> 
> Enjoy!!

Pain and warmth. That was all the villain known as Cramoisi felt for a stunning second.

Levi felt a sharp stone cut across his temple as he fell due to the same fucker he’d met at nearly every raid since two years ago. The intruder loosened his grip for the slightest second and he took his chance. He launched his hand towards the other’s neck and forced them down to the ground. He heard the brat’s skull thud against the concrete and he internally winced; no one was supposed to be hurt by him doing this. By being Cramoisi. Without so much as a departing glance, Levi grabbed his temporarily forgotten bag and dug around his cloak. He grinned to himself as he pulled out a sleek, black feather and dropped it where the bag was before placing the bag between his teeth and climbing up the straight brick wall. He pulled himself over the rooftop edge, breathing heavily, and darted off.

Levi dashed across rooftops as he clutched the bag of precious stones in his left hand and his bleeding temple with his right. He gritted his teeth and removed his hand from his temple briefly to wipe his eyes; the blood was getting everywhere. He clicked his tongue and kept running.

 _Damn brat, of course he’d show up tonight._ Levi thought angrily. He jumped off another roof and flew through the air, emerald green trailing behind him. This raid was supposed to be an easy one: dart in, grab the jewels, get them to the merchants quickly, and then get his money. But the damn brat who was going by Justitiam wouldn’t let him go.

As more blood trickled down his face, Levi took in his surroundings once he slowed to a halt above an office building. He heard police sirens down several blocks and groaned; he knew that getting back home would be tough now. Levi glanced over the small city; the docks weren’t that far and he was certain the merchants would still be there; he had stolen about $5,000 worth of diamonds after all. With the grace of a bird, Levi dropped to the ground and took off down a dark alley towards the docks. He'd studied the merchant alleys like he’d studied Biology for his upcoming test. Levi let a small sigh past his lips as he remembered he was still a college senior with too much on his plate.

His foot slipped into a deep puddle and muddy water splashed onto his crisp and clean clothes. He turned a blind eye for the moment and concentrated on the twisty path. All he had to do was make a left and he’d be home free. Well, at least close to being home free.

 _Fate fucking hates me._ Levi complained in his mind. He had turned left but between the merchants and him stood a small group of people in white cloaks. They all donned disturbing red masks that looked like human faces without skin, and their white hoods were drawn over their eyes.  The smallest lifted her hood and looked Levi over.

“So this is Shiganshina’s biggest thug, eh? What was your name again? Cramoisi?” the blonde girl mused. The two others were much taller, but they seemed to defer to her, snickering obediently. She had to be the leader then.

“And who the hell are you?” Levi shot back. The boy with black hair opened his mouth to speak, but the girl sent him a glare that stopped him in his tracks.

“It doesn’t matter who we are,” she said coolly. “We’re here for the jewels. Hand them over to us and we’ll leave you alone. If you don’t, you might get hurt.” Levi rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue.

“Fuck you all. I have to go.” He braced himself to be hit as he tried to run through the trio. The two subordinates grabbed both of his arms and threw him back against the brick wall. Levi heard his spine crack as it impacted, but he forced himself to get back on his feet...

…which proved to be a big mistake. The trio rushed him from all directions, landing punches in his gut and kicks on his face. At first, Levi was able to dodge most attacks but as they continued, he slowed.

“Someone- ought to- teach you-some damn- manners!” The girl snapped, accenting each word with a blow. Levi felt the world slip from under him and with a loud bang, he fell to the ground and hit his head. His vision became blurry and he felt a sticky warmth seizing his hair for its own. Someone kicked his chest but Levi was too out of it to identify the culprit. The same person leaned over and took the bag of stolen jewels. They dropped one into Levi’s hand and took the rest. A voice he recognized as the girl’s snarled into his ear. “You’re just a petty thief, Cramoisi. Stay out of the Titans’ way.”

The voice left and everything was silent except for the sounds of Levi’s labored breathing. His head still felt like it was bleeding, and he was sure that the cut on his temple had reopened in the fight. “F-fuck,” he breathed out in pain. Levi slowly rolled over, groaning. He grudgingly forced his arms to push his body into a sitting position. Bracing himself against the wall, he slowly stood on shaky legs. Gripping the lone diamond in his hand, he limped down the final block and met the merchants. They seemed pissed off, but there wasn’t much Levi could do about it in his present condition.

“Finally, Cramoisi! Where the fuck were you? With the cops roaming the city, it would be suspicious if they saw two people loitering in a dark as fuck alley.”

“I got attacked,” Levi stated. “They took all the diamonds except for this one.” He held out the bloody diamond and glared at the merchants. “How much will you give me?” The second silent merchant came to inspect the stone. He looked about it, checking for carat size, scratches, and if it was a fake or not. He stepped back and nodded to the other.

“We’ll give you $800.” Levi’s nostrils flared, but it was unseen under his large crow mask. He knew he had stolen five diamonds; he should’ve been getting $5000 or above collectively. It should’ve been about $1000 per rock.

“Bullshit. That’s worth about $1000 or more. Don’t you fucking try that shit with me,” he hissed dangerously.

“Consider it your best offer, Cramoisi. We taxed your pay because you made us wait. So either take the $800 or we’ll _tax_ again and take out $300 this time.” Levi gritted his teeth, but he needed the money to pay for his apartment and for Farlan and Isabel. He forced himself to nod and dropped the rock into the silent merchant’s hand before receiving the eight $100 bills. He quickly counted the cash and after finding it all there, he tucked it in his suit and began hobbling away.

“Stupid merchants, cheating me of my money. And why the hell are there Titans in Shiganshina? Their territory is Sina. Damn it all to hell,” he mumbled to himself. Thankfully, Farlan’s place wasn’t that far from his merchant exchanges. Even with his limp and slowed pace, Levi managed to get to their door in three minutes. He knocked three times firmly and took off his mask while he waited for Farlan to show.

The door opened a crack and Farlan pulled Levi inside. He shut the door quickly behind him and locked three of the six locks on his door. When Farlan turned to see Levi, he found that the man was already slumped into a chair, bleeding profusely from his head. “What happened? Usually you’re earlier than this; I got worried.”

“Some fuckers from another street gang came at me all at once. It was three-on-one, and they were skilled. They took most of the loot, but I managed to scrape up $400 for us both.” Levi pulled out the wad of cash and handed it out to Farlan to divide evenly. “Where’s Isabel?”

“She’s asleep.”

“Why so early? She’s usually always awake when I come.”

“It’s 3AM. Levi.”

“I’ve come at 4 before.”

“Well, you sleep a lot when you’re pregnant.” Levi whipped his head to stare at Farlan.

“Are you joking? Please tell me you’re joking.” Farlan shook his head and placed the money aside.

“Found out today. Her period was late, so she decided to take a test just to see. It’s going to be tough; I still can’t find any work to help pay for things, and her job pays minimum wage.”

“I’ll help you out,” Levi declared.

“If you would just let me help _you,_ ” Farlan began before he was cut off by Levi.

“No crime. You’re too good to have to go to prison. And you’re a father now; you can’t afford to miss who knows how many years of your kid’s life. Let me handle this.”

“Whatever. You have a change of clothes in the bathroom. Go change so you can go home.” Levi nodded and trudged his way to the bathroom. He changed out of his blood ridden black suit, boots, and emerald cape and put them in a plastic bag, before changing to jeans, a white T-shirt that was slightly to small on him, and a red and black plaid shirt on top with plain black Converses. His face was still dirty, but he could take care of that with a long shower after he got back to his own apartment.

He made his way back to Farlan who held out Levi’s share of the money. “I’ll make it work somehow,” Levi promised.

“Just look after yourself as well,” Farlan requested before closing the door to Levi.

***

Levi forced open his apartment door and made his way through the dark apartment. He placed his Cramoisi outfit in his personal cleaning closet and closed the door. He trudged drown the hall, pressing a hand to his temple, before his eyes rolled back into his head and his world went blacker than his darkest feather.

..

…

….

……

 _Beep. Beep. Beep._ Levi heard a steady tempo as he drifted back into consciousness. His eyelids felt heavy, but he still tried to open them. Levi realized that his head felt heavy and was hard to move as well. He was able to see most of the room his was in with eyelids half open. It seemed he was in a hospital room. That would explain the smell of antiseptic and the constant beeping; it was the heart monitor placed next to him.

“You’re awake!” Levi turned his head as quickly as he could to identify the voice. It went along with his new roommate and eye-candy… no,   _just_ roommate: Eren Jaeger. “You had me so worried!” Levi tried to ignore the flutters he felt when he realized Eren had worried about him.

“Why… are you here… Bright Eyes?” An awkward pause fell on both of them as Levi realized that he just called Eren by the nickname he kept secret from him. _Shit._ A light flush dusted Eren’s dark cheeks, but he answered anyway. 

“I, um, well this morning I went to eat breakfast and uh... well, you were passed out on the floor all bruised and cut up. A couple wounds were still bleeding. So I freaked out and took you to the hospital.”

“But you don’t have a car… How’d you get me here?” _Shit, the bill. How do I deal with the fucking bill for this? Dammit Bright Eyes, I’ve survived worse…_

“Well, I started just running down the street, and I happened to bump into a girl who knew you. She let us use her car and I drove you here. She’s somewhere in the hospital right now, but I’m not sure where. She had these cool glasses. They were kinda like goggles.” Levi groaned as he realized Eren was talking about Hanji. However, he still jumped for joy at the realization that he had been carried in Eren’s arms.

“Oh, well, thank you so much,” he said sincerely. “I didn’t mean to cause any trouble. I was out with two of my friends at a bar and after they left, um, I got mugged and beat up in an alley,” Levi lied. The only people he’d tell about him and Cramoisi being one and the same were Erwin, Hanji, Farlan, and Isabel. The fewer that knew, the better… “It was probably because I’m gay, but whatever. If I hadn’t been drunk, I probably could’ve taken 'em.”

“Wait, you’re gay?” Eren questioned, doing a small double take.

“Yeah. Sorry, I should’ve told you before you moved in.” _I hope he’s not “aggressively heterosexual” and doesn’t freak the fuck out about it…_

“No, I’m gay too so it’s fine. But isn’t that a hate crime? You should report the bastard.”

“I don’t remember his face,” Levi said simply. “And it’s fine, just a mugger; I can fight them any day so long as I’m not drunk.” Eren laughed, and it sounded like music to Levi’s ears. There wasn’t any denying it anymore- Levi liked Eren to some extent.

“Hey, Levi,” Eren asked as his eyelids grew heavy again, “do you want to restart our friendship?”

“Sure,” Levi whispered, black pulling at him again.

“Hi, I’m Eren Jaeger. Nice to meet you!”

“Hey, I’m Levi Ackerman. The pleasure’s all mine.” They clasped each other’s hand in a quick handshake, and Levi couldn’t help but think that Eren’s hand was made to fit perfectly into his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for hits/kudos/comments!! You're all really kind!!
> 
> (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:・ﾟ✧


	6. Chapter 4.9- Life Cheating Game

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interlude with a girl whose purpose has become unclear.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annie speaks.
> 
> Thank you for reading and commenting! Your kudos give me life, TBH.

<I'll sneer by myself as I pray for guidance>

The white cloaked girl knelt, the rough wood of the church’s floor scraping her palms.

“Petty, petty things. That’s all you’ve been doing, Löwe. Where is the viciousness that gave the Titans such a feared name in Sina?”

“I still have it.” The girl growled through gritted teeth. “He’s in the hospital.”

“But not dead.” The voice hissed. “Not good enough. You held back. You outnumbered him. Why isn’t he dead?” They paused. “Luckily, he isn’t the biggest concern. Cramoisi, as it is, is far too concerned with stealing and fleeing. What I want is the death of Justitiam.”

Löwe let out a gasp, unheard behind her mask.

“Understood? That little vigilante isn’t too threatening, but he might ruin a single operation and everything will come crashing down.”

“Yes,” she tried not to stammer, tried not to show how unnerved she’d become.

“Go. I expect it done soon.”

The girl instantly fled, pushing the heavy stained glass doors aside and slipping out into the alleyway. Hurriedly, she took off her mask and cloak, stuffing them in a bag inconspicuously left near the dumpster before she shouldered it and scurried back to her apartment, located only a few blocks away from Trost University. Letting herself in with trembling hands, the girl stumbled into her bathroom and gasped at her reflection.

For the first time in over a decade, Annie Leonhardt was near tears.

The blond girl shakily pushed her hair out of her eyes and rested her elbows on the counter, propping herself up. She was one of the few people who knew who Justitiam was, just by association. She understood Eren Jaeger, respected him and what he did. His purpose was so clear; he wasn’t inclined to fail.

It wasn’t for him she cried, though. She shuddered. It was his sister, Mikasa Ackerman-Jaeger.

Annie and Mikasa had hated each other on sight. They’d clashed ruthlessly in the parking lot of their high school more than once, had furiously torn each other down with barbs and snide remarks. They’d infuriated each other, wanted each other dead, and then they’d brought each other’s parents into an argument.

Everything suddenly became so much clearer. Mikasa’s drive to protect and Annie’s drive to fight for her cause- suddenly, they understood each other. The taunts became teasing, the snide remarks vanished. When Annie transferred to Sina Academy, they’d been friends. When Annie returned to Shiganshina and enrolled in Trost University, she’d met a girl who obligingly showed her around. Mikasa later recognized her, and they’d renewed their friendship. Now, people could find them dragging each other out for coffee, lending each other notes, and jokingly sparring out in the grounds. Mikasa was one of the few that could make Annie genuinely smile and laugh. And Eren…Mikasa fought for him, loved him so much because they were closer than blood siblings.

Killing him would crush Mikasa, the girl she was hopelessly falling in love with, ruin everything for Annie, and would end the life of a person that didn’t deserve it. But Annie’s purpose was in jeopardy. She’d joined the Titans for a reason. She was fighting to destroy the hierarchy in the towns, fighting as her father had asked. She’d never been conflicted before.

But remembering her father, his promise to stand by her, how he’d told her to hate the world because it was her enemy… Annie straightened up and wiped the tears out of the corner of her eyes. She exited the bathroom, grabbed her bag from the place she’d thrown it, and carefully set it aside.

She had to kill Eren “Justitiam” Jaeger.

Annie tied her hair back in a neat bun, exhaling slowly through her teeth. When Mikasa found out, which she would soon enough, they would fight far worse than they ever had in high school. There would be no recovery or renewal from this. Certainly, Mikasa would kill her after everything was done.

Annie allowed her lips to quirk up in a humorless smile.

How fitting, to die at the hands of one you love. But she _had_ been cheating death every day. It would’ve been too convenient if that had been allowed to continue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you thought?


	7. Chapter 5- Waiting for Superman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Um... things? I don't know how to describe this. Feels-ish.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shit goes down next update.

Eren watched Levi’s eyes drift shut again. He didn’t know what to think of the senior anymore. First he’d been an asshole, then Eren had found him bleeding out on the floor and he was suddenly the most worried he’d been in years, then Levi decided to be kind and accepting out of left field. He wasn’t sure what the fuck was going on anymore.

Eren surveyed the other man, who looked smaller than ever when tucked neatly under sheets. Bandages covered almost every inch of skin he had exposed, and more wrapped around his torso. They wound around his head to cover the gash on his temple, were plastered on his hands and legs haphazardly to obscure bruises and cuts.

The boy cringed, remembering finding him this morning.

He stumbled out of bed, yawning and momentarily forgetting where he was. Eren checked to make sure his other half was safely jammed under the bed before wandering out of his room. Levi’s door was ajar, and Eren blinked, slowly looking around before peeking in. The room was immaculate save for the bed, which had mussed navy blue sheets and a white and black comforter tangled up at the foot of it. Eren frowned. If the other was awake, shouldn’t he have made his bed? He seemed anal enough about cleaning.

He shook his head and meandered into the bathroom, using it before taking a shower and brushing his teeth and hair.

 _Why do I feel like something is very wrong?_ Eren thought as he passed Levi’s empty room to return to his own. An unnerving feeling crept up on him, growing stronger because Eren had just now realized how silent the apartment was. Changing, he stepped out into the kitchen to find food. Levi mentioned earlier that he had a few eggs. On his way toward the refrigerator, he tripped over something.

“Huh? Oh, holy SHIT!” Eren shrieked.

Levi lay unconscious on the floor, battered and bruised, blood seeping through his clothes and smudging the tiles. He took shallow breaths and his skin looked deathly pale. Eren gaped before immediately bending down and quickly scooping the shorter man into his arms. His eyes flickered open, the usually sharp silver gray dull and unfocused. The glassy orbs trained on him briefly before fluttering shut again.

“…what I get… crimson…”’ he murmured near inaudibly before passing out once more, curling closer to Eren. The boy gulped worriedly before taking off, rushing out of the apartment complex. Eren cursed when he realized the nearest hospital, Trost General, was a long walk away. He didn’t have a car, didn’t know where or even which one Levi’s was, and he was scared the other was going to bleed out soon.

He spotted a woman driving past the apartments and hurried toward her, desperately trying not to jostle Levi too much. The woman stopped driving; tilting her head quizzically as she saw someone coming toward her with another slumped in their arms. She screamed in surprise, her eyes widening in recognition as she scrambled out of the car and rushed toward them.

“LEVI! Who the hell did this?” she railed, turning her crazed eyes on Eren. Messy brown locks fell into her eyes, obscuring her features and making her surprisingly menacing.

“I don’t know!” Eren responding, panic overtaking him when he noticed the rise and fall of Levi’s chest becoming more imperceptible. “Please, can I borrow your car, or can you drive me to Trost General?”

“Take it!” the woman cried, shoving her glasses/goggles from her hair so they covered her eyes. “I have to go tell Erwin! And Petra, and the rest of the squad! Oh, and call those siblings of his! Just make sure Levi is okay for me, all right?” She grasped his shoulders and shook him. “Take care of him, because he doesn’t take care of himself!”

Eren nodded, equal parts frantic and grateful that he’d come across one of Levi’s apparent friends. Opening the back door of the car and shoving papers and assorted junk off the seats, he placed Levi inside. As he moved to the driver’s seat, he heard the man blearily mutter, “Shitty glasses?”

The drive through the hospital and the time he spent in the waiting room were the longest hours he’d spent in his life. Finally, a familiar man walked into the waiting room.

“Dad!” Eren stammered, bolting to his feet and stumbling over to Grisha Jaeger. “Wait, you’re on duty today? And how’s Levi?”

The man wearily rubbed his forehead, but he smiled somewhat fondly at his son. “Your friend will be all right, in time. But whoever attacked him sure hurt him badly. I can’t remember how many stitches I had to do to close the wound on his temple and the few on his ribs.”

Eren’s heart constricted. He’d known Levi had been hurt badly, but the extent of his injuries had been obscured by his bloody clothes. “Thanks, Dad.”

Grisha laughed. “It’s my job, son. Well, go see if he’s awake, then! I have to go take care of that Ymir girl. Apparently, she got in a bar fight over her girlfriend.”

Eren winced. That did sound like Ymir. Maybe he’d go visit her later. “I’ll see you later, Dad. Can I have his room number?”

“I’d suppose you’d need it,” the man joked, but gave Eren the number without preamble. He bounded off to the room.

Shortly after he’d gotten there, Levi woke up, and their slightly awkward conversation had ensued. All Eren could think of was how peaceful he looked asleep, breath puffing out slowly and ghosting over the white pillow.

“LEVI~” Someone cried, barging through the door. Eren couldn’t see who it was because of the giant bouquet of blue hydrangeas in front of their face. When the person lowered them, Eren realized it was the woman from before. She made a soft “ah” of surprise and quietly sat the flowers on the nightstand, backing away. “Sorry.”

Eren moved forward a bit so he could fall into the woman’s line of sight. She bounced in place. “Oh, you’re the cutie who took care of him this morning! I would’ve gotten here sooner, but I had to hunt down his siblings, first of all, and then walk back here, since you had my car.” She paused, rubbing the back of her head sheepishly. “I think I left them behind.”

He nodded slowly, wondering where she got her manic energy from. “So you’re a friend of Levi’s?” he asked unsurely. “I’m his roommate, Eren Jaeger.”

“Yup! Hanji Zoe, at your service!” Hanji grinned. “I’ve been friends with him since high school.”

“…friends?” Levi groaned from the bed. The two of them whipped around to stare at him. He was frowning. “Shitty glasses, you latched onto me one day and didn’t let go. I don’t think we qualify as friends.”

Hanji grasped her heart dramatically. “Levi! You wound me!”

“Whatever, shitty glasses; you woke me up with your shrieking earlier. I have every right to be pissed. Where’s everyone else? You’d think Petra would be fluttering about already.” He snapped, rolling his eyes.

“The squad got all hung up with their shifts at the Rose,” Hanji said apologetically. “But your self-proclaimed sister and brother are coming! I kinda left them in the dust, though.”

“You have siblings?” Eren asked intelligently. “And how come she’s calling your other friends your ‘squad?’”

Levi sighed, looking away. His brow had furrowed considerably at the mention of his siblings. “We’re not really related, as Hanji said. We’re just really close friends. They used to call us the thug trio, you know. And as for the squad thing… it just… felt right. I can’t explain.”

Hanji was nodding along sagely. “Indeed! But- oh!”

She was interrupted by an angry, petite redhead that barged through the door. Placing her hands on her hips, the girl glared at Hanji, Caribbean eyes narrowed dangerously. “What was that?” she snapped. “You ran off and left us blocks behind, and Farlan was winded! Hey!”

“Sorry?” Hanji offered, slightly sincere.

But the girl had already moved on to flutter around the bed. “Big bro! Who beat you up? I’ll go kick ass!”

“You’ll sit your ass right down and go nowhere. It isn’t just your life at stake here.” Levi admonished. “And this was just a hate crime. I got beaten up leaving a bar.”

“Like hell you did,” someone retorted.

In the doorway stood a man with pale brown hair and gray eyes. He strode toward the redhead, standing over Levi. Worry and irritation mingled in his eyes. “If you would just let me help you, honestly…”

Levi wrenched himself up, gritting his teeth to avoid crying out from pain. The heart monitor’s beeping quickened. “You say nothing about that, Farlan. I can take care of myself.”

“You’re only thinking of you!” Farlan replied. “Don’t you know how worried we get-”

“I’ve been through worse! And I am not doing this for myself,” Levi hissed. “This is for the both of you. You think I want you back out on the streets again? Huh? No Farlan, you and Isabel deserve to have a roof over your heads. I’ll do this for as long as I have to.”

“This is a huge setback, though…” Hanji mused. “I can take over-”

“You damn well will not, shitty glasses. I just… I’ll get out and find a way.”

Eren stepped forward hesitantly. “Um, what’s going on?”

“Shit,” Levi swore softly, as if he’d forgotten Eren was there. “Um… nothing, Bright Eyes.”

That nickname again. Eren got the feeling it was meant to distract him. “No, it’s not. ‘Cuz it sounds like you guys are having financial problems.”

Isabel, Farlan, and Levi winced as one. Hanji grimaced. “Um, Eren, maybe you shouldn’t talk about that.”

“Don’t give us pity!” Isabel said. “Because we’re fine! I have a job, and… and Farlan’s looking. Big bro helps out too.”

“Yes, and you’re not supposed to talk about it.” Farlan sighed. “Though I did bring it up…”

“What, do you strip or something?” the words fell out of Eren’s mouth before he could stop them.

“What the hell!” Levi gasped.

Hanji literally fell to the ground laughing, and Isabel wasn’t much better. Farlan was staring at him and slowly shaking his head.

“Yes, dumbass. I strip. It pays real fucking well. Problem?” Levi sneered, regaining his composure and glaring at Eren. “And you, shitty glasses, get the fuck outta here.”

“Okay!” Hanji squealed, still giggling. “I’ll leave!” she bounded out of Levi’s room. “But I’ll be back, Levi~”

“Stay the fuck out!” Levi called, with no real malice in his voice. He turned back to Eren, who was gaping at him. “What, did I break you, dumbass?”

“You’re such an asshole.” Eren sighed, but his lips quirked up at seeing Levi was back to normal. He checked his watch and sighed. “I should probably go steal Mikasa’s notes. See you later, Levi. And I don’t think any less of you, for anything.”

“Out, Bright Eyes. Go get yourself an education.”

As Eren walked out, he heard Farlan restart the conversation from earlier. “Stripping? Are you serious?”

“Better than the reality. He doesn’t need that in his life…” Eren frowned as he grew too far away to hear.

_What’s he hiding, then?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please continue with your feedback! And if you see any typos, please point them out.


	8. Chapter 6- Twin Skeletons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your kind words and gestures.

The next three and a half weeks passed uneventfully. Levi was discharged from the hospital, and life returned to normal after that little scare. Levi and Eren’s relationship steadily improved, which was good because it seemed like the freshman dorms wouldn’t be fixed for months yet.

But lately Eren wasn’t sure what to think. He’d catch Levi looking at him sometimes, a glance out of the corner of his eyes that suggested behind the irritation and aloofness, he actually cared about Eren. And he’d suddenly begun doing spontaneously nice things, like bringing him coffee or food from the Rose Diner. Even when Eren helplessly asked why, Levi only shrugged and said things like, “My friends work there, dumbass; it’s fine.” Or, “Shut up and accept it already.” It made Eren wonder what had changed, especially after how Levi acted at the beginning.

It wasn’t like the looks were one sided, though. Once Eren found himself staring at his roommate as he furiously cleaned, ignoring the bitching Levi was doing about making a mess. He’d just been watching the way his bangs fell into his eyes, his sharp silver eyes that Eren kinda wanted to see wide open with- Yeah, Eren didn’t want to go there. The staring he’d catch himself doing was maddening. Eren would start sketching for an art project, and halfway through, he’d find himself drawing Levi.

That was only half the time; the others, he’d draw scenes from a different time. Eren kept seeing the scenes in his dreams; cities destroyed and burning, a forest with huge trees, a large wall. He remembered flying, remembered blood on his hands, on a pair of swords. He also recalled wearing a cloak. A heavy, emerald green cloak, exactly like Cramoisi’s. The irritation Eren felt at that came mingled with fear and an odd sense of pride. Those feelings made him not want to dream anymore.

Besides Levi’s odd actions and the dreams, the only thing out of the ordinary was that Eren hadn’t seen Cramoisi in a while. He was starting to wonder if the thief had been caught, but checking the news yielded no headlines proclaiming his capture.

 _So has he died then?_ Eren wondered, sitting on the edge of a rooftop after completing one circuit. His legs dangled over the edge and he swung them absentmindedly, scanning the city for trouble. _It really would be a shame. But I can’t think of any other reason…_

Eren got to his feet and huffed, working out the stiffness in his joints before he turned and took a running start. He vaulted over the gap and landed on the next rooftop. Letting a tiny laugh of exhilaration escape him, Eren leapt again and watched the city turn into a blur. Gazing at the cloudless sky as he rushed across concrete, he appreciated the pinpricks of light, all he could see of the stars.

Suddenly, Eren caught something out of the corner of his eye. Pausing at the edge of a rooftop and crouching down, he peered into the alleyway below. He spotted a small figure in a white cloak edging toward… Cramoisi?

 _So he isn’t dead,_ Eren mused. _But what does that other person want?_ Looking closer through augmented gold eyes, he realized the other person was wearing a mask that looked like a human face without skin.

_Wait… isn’t that the trademark of the Titans?!_

He was hit with a childhood memory. Eren and Mikasa were crouched underneath the table as their father comforted their mother. The headline scrolling across the TV proclaimed, “Titans Destroy Sina Law Firms and Richest Neighborhood in City, Hundreds Dead from Bombing.”

Carla sobbed, crumpling against Grisha as she lamented the deaths of their friends. Eren gritted his teeth and scurried out from under the table, hating hearing his mother cry. Mikasa scrabbled at his hand trying to get him to stay, but he batted her off, forcing her to follow him out. He bounded in front of his mother and boldly proclaimed in a fit of childish anger: “I’ll kill all the Titans!”

 _Shaking himself back to the present,_ Eren thought. _What is one of them doing here? This isn’t their territory! How have they grown so large they’ve expanded into other cities? Shit, I feel like I should’ve known…_

“I know you’re there,” Cramoisi suddenly spat. Eren started, thinking it was aimed at him, but the white cloaked figure paused and straightened.

“Perceptive.” _Ah, so it’s a girl. Or at least sounds like one. That voice is familiar. But whose is it?_

Cramoisi turned, and Eren noticed him tense. “Where are your two goons, Titan? And aren’t you usually the chatty one?”

“I have a name. I’m not so low in the chain of command. Can’t you see the custom mask? I am Löwe.” She returned. “And to answer your inquiries, they aren’t here, and I normally don’t speak so much.”

Cramoisi sighed. “Then can you shut up and leave me alone? I have places I need to be.”

“No. I have a question for you,” the Titan leaned in closer and Cramoisi stepped back into a fighting stance. “I expect a proper answer.”

“What, you want a civilized conversation now?” he growled. “Last time you had no problem beating me into a wall without much preamble.”

 _So they’ve met before, and that’s what happened? He got hurt and probably couldn’t steal like normal._ Eren scowled. _Huh. It never occurred to me he’d have enemies too._

“You were just hospitalized,” Löwe replied flippantly. “Technically, we were supposed to kill you. But luckily for your health, you aren’t the problem. My question is this; where is Justitiam Jae-, well, I suppose I can just call him Justitiam. I’d rather kill him out in the streets at nighttime than in the day. That’s too obvious.”

_Shit! She knows who I am, and she nearly told him! I might as well fight her now!_

Eren swung onto the fire escape that led from the building. Landing lightly near Cramoisi, he snapped, “Well, why are you bothering him? I’m right here. And I think you’ll find it a little harder than you’re expecting to kill me.”

“Brat, don’t,” Cramoisi cautioned. There was genuine worry in his voice. “She’s not-”

“It’s his life, isn’t it?” the Titan laughed, sounding oddly broken. “Can’t he do as he pleases?”

Cramoisi growled at Eren, “Get out of here.”

It was a bit too late for that.

Eren found himself being roundhouse kicked into a wall before he could blink. He gritted his teeth to avoid crying out in pain and ducked to evade Löwe’s next kick. He punched her in the stomach, but she only huffed and kicked his knee to knock him down. Eren couldn’t roll out of the way fast enough, so when she harshly kicked him, he was thrown into the opposite wall. His head cracked against it and he whimpered. He brought his arm up into a triangle block to escape getting kicked in the head, but another blow never came.

Eren peeked through his arm and realized Cramoisi had intercepted the Titan. He’d discarded his cloak and whatever he was carrying to free his arms. Despite being in a longer cloak, Löwe had no such problem. She moved in a circular pattern, the cloak seemingly not hindering her mobility at all. Eren tried to get up, but found it was suddenly hard to move. All he could do was watch.

The movements of the two fighters were so rapid Eren could barely see the individual strikes, just flashes of black and white. But after a few minutes of traded punches and kicks, it seemed the girl had gained the upper hand. He realized with a start that Löwe was continually striking the places that were already injured. After a sweep kick, Cramoisi crashed to the asphalt. Löwe calmly kicked him in the ribs before slamming the heel of her boot into his head and knocking him senseless.

Löwe turned to him and brought a pair of brass knuckles out of her pocket. Placing them over her fingers, the Titan strode forward and grabbed Eren by the collar. Eren frantically opened his mouth and bit the girl’s hand so hard it bled. She swore and slammed her knee into his stomach, dropping him to the ground. Eren gritted his teeth to stop himself from screaming and punched her in the stomach, in the same place both he and later Cramoisi had struck. She doubled over, but recovered amazingly quickly.

Löwe casually wrenched his arm out of its socket and tossed him over toward Cramoisi, who rolled toward him. Eren landed hard on his damaged shoulder and nearly screeched from sheer agony.

“Brat… didn’t I tell you… she wasn’t to be fucked with?” Cramoisi gasped. He was clutching his chest, and Eren realized his ribs were probably cracked.

“Now I realize that! Shut up, okay? I’m going to die!” Eren hissed. He hated this, hated his own stupidity and the fact that it had forced him to give up. His arm was dislocated, his head was pounding, and his body ached.

Löwe stalked toward them. “I could have finished this with one blow, you know. A strike with these,” she indicated the brass knuckles. “To the temple, with enough force, would’ve killed you.”

“Wow, I didn’t want to die!” Eren snarked. “What a terrible thing! Sorry for ruining your plans!”

“Sassy little shit,” Löwe replied. “I didn’t really want to do this, you know.” She trailed off somewhat sadly. “I didn’t ask for this. It’s just something I have to do. Do you understand that, at least?”

“No!” Eren cried. He frantically tried to think of how he could flee, but there wasn’t anything left to do. The girl didn’t seem like she would walk away and she was perfectly poised to kill.

Before the Titan girl could get any closer, someone came up behind her and put her in a chokehold. Löwe writhed as she struggled for air. She managed to free herself by elbowing the other in the solar plexus, and spun around, taking a few steps to the side to assess her new opponent.

The girl standing in the shadows of the alley had pale skin, black hair covering one silver eye, a red scarf wrapped around the lower half of her face that draped over her shoulders, and wore a black bodysuit with a red cherry blossom stitched over the hip.

Cramoisi struggled to sit up, breathing “Akahime?” in shock.

Eren gaped. His vision was going fuzzy from pain, but he recognized his sister. “’Kasa?” he mumbled.

“Yes to both, chibi and idiot.” She replied quietly. Then she turned to Löwe, merely studying her. “Why?” she questioned simply. The word was spoken in the empty tone she adopted when deeply hurt. Her expression didn’t change as she ghosted over to Löwe, who edged away, seemingly panicked.

“I had to. I was ordered… and for what I believed in.” the Titan whispered.

“What you believe in is going to get you killed!” Mikasa roared, snapping her leg up in a high kick.

Löwe ducked and fell to her knees, fingers digging into loose gravel as she trembled.

“Get up and fight, pathetic lion.” Mikasa hissed coldly. Eren flinched.

Löwe forced herself to her feet, placing the brass knuckles back in her pocket. She and Mikasa began to circle each other.

“I don’t want to fight you. Not like this.” Löwe replied, her breathing shockingly ragged as her composure crumbled to pieces.

“You made a mistake attacking him. What, did you think I wouldn’t hear of the Titans’ plans? Your two idiots,” she spat. “Were talking about it a little too loud. Apparently you wanted to get this over with so I would kill you. I won’t give you that. I’ll just _**break**_ you.”

The two girls leapt at each other, and if Eren thought Löwe had been fast when she fought Cramoisi, it was nothing compared to how she was now. Her desperation and rage fueled her, but Mikasa matched her blow for blow until the Titan started getting reckless. Eren thought he heard her sob as her knifehand clipped Mikasa, who retaliated by catching her wrist and wrenching her arm behind her back. The Titan fell back against Mikasa, shuddering.

 _Where did all that viciousness go? It’s like Mikasa is someone she can’t hurt._ Eren frowned. _And looking at her fight Mikasa… it’s like I’ve seen it happen before._

“Why?’ Mikasa asked again.

“I joined the Titans to topple the hierarchy.” Löwe answered quickly.

“That wasn’t your dream; it was your father’s! After what he did to you, you’re going to do what he wanted? He’s dead now; let him go!” Mikasa shook Löwe.

“He was my father and I crippled him! Didn’t I have a duty?” The Titan cried.

Mikasa’s eyes softened, and when she spoke next, her voice was less harsh. “Didn’t he say if you felt it was necessary, you could abandon your mission? We… I’m still your friend. I’m on your side too. You can leave them. Don’t worry about the fallout.” She loosened her grip and hugged Löwe from behind. The Titan stiffened in shock.

“What the fuck? Who is she that Akahime, of all people, will comfort her?” Cramoisi huffed. “I met that girl out on the streets once and she’s ruthless.”

Eren shrugged helplessly, but internally, he counted all the people Mikasa would do anything for. Him, their parents, Armin, and…

“You’re important… Annie.” Mikasa murmured.

 _Holy fuck._ Eren’s jaw dropped at hearing that. _That’s-_

The Titan stepped away from Mikasa, lowering her hood and taking off her mask. Annie gazed at Mikasa with more emotion on her face than Eren had ever seen before. “They call you a stone cold bitch behind your back, but they’re all liars.” Annie mumbled. “Okay. I’ll desert them. And I’ll get Reiner and Bertholt to as well.”

She turned to Eren and Cramoisi before bowing. “I’m sorry for… the attacks.”

Cramoisi snorted. “I don’t exactly have warm and fuzzy feelings for you, but apology accepted. Pay the fucking hospital bill for nearly breaking my ribs and I’ll be on my merry way.”

Annie promptly extracted two huge wads of bills from her back pocket and dropped them on the thief’s stomach. “Three thousand dollars and Justitiam will not bother you for the rest of tonight.”

“What gives you the right to deci-” Eren started.

“Justitiam will not bother you tonight,” Mikasa repeated pointedly. “You don’t go out of your way to kill people, and I saw you help out Sasha and Connie once. Whatever you’re stealing for… it’s probably some noble reason.”

Cramoisi made a derisive noise and stood, sweeping the money and his cloak into the bag with whatever he’d stolen. He then loped out of the alley without a backward glance. Pausing at the mouth, he sighed and called out, “Take care, brat. You’re fucking stupid and reckless, apparently, so you need to be coddled.”

“Asshole!” Eren shouted. He managed to get to his feet, groaning at the ache in his head and shoulder.

Mikasa looked to Annie. “Come home?”

Annie nodded. “Give me one minute.” She stepped toward Eren, who automatically walked backward. Annie rolled her eyes, grabbed him by his uninjured arm, dragged him closer, and reset his shoulder.

“SON OF A-”

Even though Eren was swearing and rubbing his arm, even though he was kinda pissed at Annie and Cramoisi, watching Mikasa laugh quietly and feeling the tension seep out of the air was somehow worth what had happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell us what you thought?
> 
> Please point out any typos!


	9. Chapter 7- Stories and Shenanigans

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Explantations were in order, so they get given out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading.

Levi fled from the mix of heroes and criminals as quickly as he could with bruised ribs. His chest felt like it was on fire; the damn girl knew how to break him down in under five minutes. Levi turned into another deserted alley and leaned against the dirty wall. He brought out his stolen goods and the money given to him by Löwe. Altogether, he had enough to get Farlan and Isabel into a better apartment, but it wasn’t enough to cover any more medical bills.

“Shit,” Levi gasped as he pressed his hand to his side. “I need help.”

He hastily shoved the goods back where they were hidden and took out a black phone. He dialed a number and waited for them to answer.

“Hello?” a deep voice answered that filled Levi with some relief.

“It’s Cramoisi. I need help; I’m in an alley between 5th and 6th Streets.”

“I’ll be right there.” The phone clicked off and Levi allowed himself to slide slowly onto the ground. Just as he had reached the ground, he heard a shout.

“Hey! Cramoisi!” Levi turned his head and glared at the sound of footsteps slapping at the ground. A black and gold mask came into view, and Levi's glare softened.

“I’m over here, you damn idiot.”

Justitiam slowed to a stop and bent over, wheezing. “I…needed….to ask….you…something,” he said between pants.

“Ask me what?”

“Why… do you steal? What’s… your motive?” the younger gasped.

“I don’t need to explain myself to you,” Levi replied calmly. “My mother told me not to talk to strangers,” he finished sarcastically.

“Fuck… you,” the hero panted. “Then why… did you… try to… save me?” Bright gold eyes bore into dark silver ones, and Levi looked away with a grimace.

“You don’t deserve to die, as much as a pain in the ass you are to me.” Justitiam’s golden orbs widened in surprise.

“Who… who are you?” he whispered.

“I’m just the same as you,” Levi found himself saying. He wanted to clamp a hand down on his mouth but his arm betrayed him and let his words flow. “You think you’re noble by fighting and tracking down criminals who you would label to be me. You’re working to get people like me thrown into jail for years. But you don’t even know the half of it! I don’t want to be Cramoisi! I don’t want to have to steal and sell the shit to merchants who won’t pay me shit for it, even if I risk my life!”

Justitiam took a hesitant step back in shock. For the first time in two years, Cramoisi was actually opening up to him.

“If you don’t want to be him… Cramoisi, I mean, then why do you still do it?” he asked, truly intrigued.

“I need the money. That’s all this world is about: money. Codes of justice and laws don’t matter if you can pay enough. Hell, I could be a straight A college student, but if I don’t have the money, I can’t go to a school that would actually help me get ahead.”

Levi’s ears alerted him to the sound of someone else approaching; hopefully, his way out. He spared a glance at Justitiam again and widened his eyes. The vigilante actually seemed conflicted, like he was taking Levi seriously.

“But... but…” he tried to justify.

“There are no buts. It’s the shitty world we live in. There’ll always be the haves and the have-nots. Who are you really helping?”

Those golden orbs widened again as Levi glared off to the side. A heavy silence fell between them until a purr of an engine caught their attention. A sleek black car pulled in front of the alley and a man, dressed in black with a simple mask that covered his eyes and hair, stepped out of it.

“Hey, who are you?” Justitiam shouted, getting into a defensive stance. The man lifted his hands in surrender.

“I have no name on these streets; I’m only helping a friend.” The man walked slowly towards the injured Cramoisi and kept his hands up as Justitiam tracked his every movement with gold determination.

“Took you long enough. My ribs feel like shit; I have to go to the Doctor. She's the only one who can help me right now,” Levi complained. He stretched a hand out to the bigger man and the other heaved him up gently. The pair began to proceed to the car before Justitiam called out to them.

“What? You’re injured? Let me take you to the hospital or to my apartment!” Justitiam shouted.

“Why won’t you leave me alone?” Levi fired back. “I don’t want your help; I’m fine on my own,” he lied.

“I’m trying to repay my debt. I would’ve been dead if you didn’t get hurt for me,” the other admitted.

“Leave me alone for a week and your debt is paid,” Levi answered simply. “Now get going, it’s probably past your bedtime.”

Justitiam glared at him but began to back away from Levi and the masked man. Then, he turned and ran back into the alley he came from while shouting. “Mi- Akahime! Akahime! Where are you?” Levi ignored the shouts as he fell into the other man’s arms, weak from the pain wracking his body.

“Levi! What happened?” the other man whispered as he loaded Levi into the sleek car.

“Get in the car and I’ll explain at Hanji’s.” The other man quickly ran to the other side of the car and jumped into the driver’s seat. Within seconds, the pair was cruising down the streets towards Hanji’s apartment. Levi slid off his mask and undid his signature cloak from his back.

“Levi, what the hell?” the other demanded, knuckles white against the wheel. He raised a hand to carelessly rip off his mask and toss it in the backseats, revealing blonde, tidy hair, intelligent blue eyes, and eyebrows the size of caterpillars. “Do you even know what time it is? It’s nearly 4 in the damn morning. I’ve got an exam tomorrow and then you call me on the emergency number telling me you need help. Do you even understand how scary that is? To hear your stubborn as fuck best friend calling you saying you need help?”

“I’m sorry, Erwin, alright? Shit went down, I got hurt in the process, but I don’t have enough money for the hospital and going back to the apartment isn’t a good plan either.”

The car turned into Hanji’s apartment complex driveway. Erwin put the car on park and pulled the keys from the ignition. With some difficulty, he managed to help Levi get to the door where Hanji was waiting for them.

“Oh my god! Levi, what happened to you?!” she exclaimed as she took in Levi’s slow pace.

“I think I got my ribs bruised. I can’t go to the hospital though, I don’t have enough money.”

“Get inside! I’ll treat you,” Hanji ordered. She marched the two boys into her apartment and into the living area. After Hanji cleared off all her pre-med textbooks, Levi plopped down onto the familiar, old red couch.

“Okay, take off your shirt.”

“Why?”

“Levi! Who’s the one majoring in pre-med?” Hanji questioned from the kitchen. Levi grumbled a quiet response and began to take off his suit with help from Erwin. Sure enough, littered all over the right of his chest were dark red splotches.

“That’s going to hurt in the morning,” Levi muttered sarcastically to himself. “Fuck.”

“Okay Levi, this is going to feel downright horrible for a moment,” Hanji warned as she came back from the kitchen. She eased Levi down and gently pressed a bag of ice to his ribs. Immediately, Levi shrieked and pushed the bag away.

“WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT? FUCKING SHIT!” he screamed.

Erwin grabbed Levi by the shoulders with firm hands while Hanji retrieved the bag of ice. “Levi! Keep it down! You’ll wake Moblit!” she hissed.

“WELL, DON’T PUT THAT ON ME!”

"I have to!” Hanji turned to Erwin and adjusted her goggle-glasses. He nodded and pushed Levi down onto the couch again, holding him in place. Hanji pounced and sat on Levi’s legs, effectively pinning them down. With determination, Hanji held the bag of ice down onto Levi while he writhed and tried to escape the cold.

“Ugh! Fuuuuuuck... youuuuuu... Haaaaaaanji,” Levi groaned.

Eventually, Levi’s breaths became even again as his body temperature warmed the ice.

“Alright, Levi,” Erwin started. “It’s almost 5AM, and I need to get some sleep. But first, you tell us what the hell happened last night.” Levi took a deep breath; explaining wouldn’t be easy.

“Well, I was out doing my normal raids. But then I ran into a girl from the Sina street gang, the Titans. I’ve run into her before, so I knew not to approach her. But then she started going off about Justitiam, the fucker who keeps trying to catch me. Apparently, she had orders to kill him. Then out of the fucking sky, Justitiam dropped down into the fray and challenged the girl. I warned him not to fight her, but like a shithead, he didn’t listen to me. The guy’s like a kid, charging into something headfirst without even knowing what he’s doing. The girl had him pinned down and was going to beat him senseless, so I stepped in to try to give him enough time to get away. The dumbfuck didn’t move though, and in a few seconds, I was down as well. After that though, this other girl, Akahime-"

“You met Akahime?!” Hanji squealed quietly. “I LOVE Akahime! I love her appearance, her ferocity, everything! You should’ve gotten me an autograph!”

“Sorry, I was too busy getting my ass handed to me,” Levi retorted snidely. Hanji raised her hands in surrender and let him continue his story.

“So… um. I had… ummm. Fuck, I forgot what I was saying.”

"It was along the lines of Akahime coming into this brawl,” Erwin sighed.

“Okay. Yeah, Akahime came in, and then she and the other girl go head to head, but the other girl was really reckless. Turns out, they were gay as fuck and the girl trying to kill Justitiam was her girlfriend.”

Hanji gasped and slapped her hands over her mouth dramatically. “But that’s like suicide! Everyone knows that Akahime and Justitiam are really close! They’re like siblings, even if they don’t guard the city together!” She protested.

“Akahime must really love that girl, because she said she’d basically take her back if she left the Titans. ‘Course the other girl said she would and after that, I left. But not before I managed to score about $3000 from her.” Levi struggled slightly, but he triumphantly pulled out the wad of cash and his bag of looted goods. “I can get Farlan and Isabel a new place with this type of money.”

“Levi, that’s great and all, but the risks…” Erwin began hesitantly.

“I know the risks. I know that I could go to jail, probably for a while, because of this. But they need the money and they’re like my family; I have to help.”

“But there are other ways to do that!” Erwin started forward but Hanji placed a hand on his chest, silently telling him to back off.

“There aren’t any other ways for me! With my folks being away and my schedule being as hectic as it is, I can’t take on another paying job.” Levi sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. The tension in the room snapped like a stick when Hanji’s bedroom door opened to reveal a man with untidy brown hair walking into the room, his hand rubbing at his closed eyes.

“How about last night huh, Hanji,” Moblit chuckled, unaware of Hanji’s company. “I think you studied very well for that anatomy exam coming up.”

“Oh, babe, I know. We need to do it on the couch more often,” Hanji gracefully replied back, not at all fazed by the topic.

Levi, on the other hand, was ready to vomit. “YOU FUCKED ON THIS COUCH? AND MADE ME LAY DOWN ON IT?! WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!” he shouted as he practically vaulted off the dirty seat.

Moblit’s eyes shot open and a bright red captured his features. “L-Levi? How? W-When? I-I-I…” he spluttered helplessly in shock.

“Take me home, Erwin, please,” Levi begged. “I cannot stay here any longer or I might develop permanent mental health problems.”

“I’m with you on that,” Erwin replied, throwing on his jacket and grabbing his car keys.

“Aww, where are you guys going?” Hanji asked with a pout. “It’s just sex! Everyone does it!”

“Not everyone does it, and not everyone talks about it with their _friends!_ Now goodnight, you psychotic nightmare,” Levi rudely retorted. He stormed out of the apartment as quickly as bruised ribs allowed.

"Bye, Levi! Bye, Erwin! Say hi to Eren for me!” Hanji shouted. “Now, Moblit, I can’t seem to remember a man’s anatomy. Care to re-teach it?”

Before Erwin could hear anymore, he slammed the door shut and went after Levi.

 

* * *

 

“Here we are: la masion de Levi,” Erwin spoke flawlessly.

“Nice French, but it’s not just me anymore. Don’t forget Eren,” Levi reminded.

“How’s that going by the way? Living with him, I mean.”

Levi paused for a moment before he answered. He let memories of the past few weeks float over him. He remembered fondly all the subtle glances he caught from Eren or the way that his eyes squinted slightly when he laughed or the way that he poured the milk before the cereal in the mornings. The way that he knitted his eyebrows and jutted out his lip when he was frustrated. The way he tugged on his earlobe when he got embarrassed. The way his ears turned red when he lied, or even the way he grinned whenever Levi got home early. Levi noticed almost every little detail about Eren.

“Hello, Earth to Levi,” Erwin sing-songed while laughing.

“W-what?”

“You just zoned out while thinking about Eren, didn’t you?”

“No! That’s ridiculous.”

“When are you going to get the balls to ask him out? He’s good-looking, caring, and makes you blush.”

“I don’t blush when I think of him.”

“Then explain why your face is red as fuck.”

“…It’s hot.”

Erwin turned to face Levi with a doubtful face.

“Fuck you, I don’t need this,” Levi declared as he fumbled with the seat belt to get out of the suffocating car.

“Just ask him!” Erwin called out after Levi managed to stumble out of the car and up a step. “If he’s sparing glances, it’s a sign!”

“I’ll do it later!” Levi called back as he began to let himself into the building.

“You can’t ignore all your problems! They’ll get bigger!”

“I can try!” Levi promised and walked into his complex. He took the elevator up two floors and came to his shitty apartment door. It was still partially dented from the time Eren had tripped and banged his knee into it. Levi smiled to himself and opened the door. The interior was dark and no one was in sight.

Or so he thought.

Levi walked in further towards the small hallway between their rooms and ran face first into Eren.

“Eren?”

“Levi?”

“I thought you were sleeping,” they both blurted simultaneously.

“Um, I had an early morning study group,” Levi lied lamely.

“I, uh, went for a run?” Eren replied. “I’m just… gonna go to my room now.”

“Yeah… me too,” Levi nervously answered.

They both spared a glance back at the other before hurrying to the comforts of their own rooms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How was that? Feedback is appreciated!


	10. Chapter 8- Everything is Not What it Seems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What constitutes right and wrong, anyway? Can anyone be expected to control themself when their really hot roommate is cooking in boxers and an apron? Who knows?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, it’s Chibinico again! I’ve managed to get my shit together and crank out this mini chapter. There will be a Part 2 to it, but probably not for a lil bit. I’m still a procrastinating lil shit, and now I have a shit ton of work to catch up on. Anyway, here’s your chapter! Enjoy!

Levi tapped his pencil against his notebook as he zoned out in his pre-law class. The teacher had gotten off topic and was now droning on about their son, the police officer, who was no one of importance in Levi’s eyes. He thought about the past two weeks. Justitiam left him alone and he was finally able to get a shitty apartment for Farlan and Isabel. He managed not to get hurt again, and his ribs felt moderately better. Hell, he even got eight hours of sleep the night before.

So why did he feel so… bored? This is what he wanted, wasn’t it? Didn’t he want to raid places without anyone bothering the shit out of him? Levi groaned and redirected his focus to class; he’d sort out his thoughts later.

The topic that the class was talking about, however, was now something important. “I think Cramoisi should go to jail! So many businesses have been hurting since they began robbing everywhere. There’s absolutely no excuse for their actions,” the professor declared.

“What do you think of them as a person though, Professor?” a friend of Levi, Petra, asked.

“I think they are nothing more than a thug. They’re just a person who probably rips off their friends and causes trouble wherever they go.” The professor replied as he took a sip of his coffee. “I wouldn’t be surprised if they had a drug problem; that’s what those criminals do. Get addicted, lose their money on the addiction, and turn to violence and thievery to pay for their precious drugs. Agh, it makes me sick.”

Levi’s hand shot up immediately. He was shaking ever so slightly hearing his professor talking about _him_ like that. Everyone turned to face him in awe, surprise etched upon their faces. Levi wasn’t exactly an avid talker in his discussion based class. Regardless, the teacher called upon Levi and the class went silent.

“Why do you see them like that? Why are you criminalizing them as a horrible person away from their mask? The only thing anyone has ever seen them do is steal. Even Akahime said that she saw them helping someone before,” Levi argued hotly.

“Stealing is wrong, and it’s also punishable by law. They shouldn’t think they’re above the law just because they can be pals with those idiotic vigilantes and then steal around closed corners. It’s not about what they do, it’s about morals. Anyone who steals is in the wrong, because stealing isn't right. Simple, really.”

“No, it’s not that simple!”

“You mean to tell me that if someone stole your savings, you wouldn’t find that a problem?” the professor asked, smirking.

“If I knew their intentions, like, if it was going to their wife in need of surgery or something, I’d gladly let them take everything! If they wanted my money to find a prostitute and get a good fuck on the other hand, then I would go to the police in a heartbeat!” Levi yelled back as he slammed his hands on the desk in front of him and stood up.

“Language, Mr. Ackerman,” the professor warned sternly. The class was so silent you could hear a pin drop. The tension between Levi and his professor was thick enough to cut with a knife. “Cramoisi is a criminal who needs to be brought to justice. If you think he’s that noble, then maybe you should go ask him yourself.”

Levi leveled a death glare at the professor and leaned down to grab his backpack. He slung it over his shoulder and left his seat.

“Levi!” Petra pleaded.

“Mr. Ackerman, where are you going?”

“I’m going to get that fucking answer, if you must know.” Levi stormed to the door and slammed it shut as he walked out.

The sun shone brightly as he stomped down the sidewalk towards his apartment. “Fucking Professor Zackley,” he muttered to himself as he shoved his keys into the lock and let himself in.

“I REALLY CAN’T STAY~! I’VE GOT TO GO AWAY~! THIS EVENING HAS BEEN~ SO VERY NICE~” Levi walked into his apartment in utter confusion.

 _What the fuck? It’s not even the second week of November. Who’s singing Christmas songs?_ Levi thought to himself as he placed his bag down and slipped off his shoes. After shrugging off his coat, he strode into the kitchen to find Eren in nothing but his boxers and an apron in front of the stove, singing to his heart’s content. He swayed his hips ever so slightly to the beat of the song, not yet noticing Levi’s presence.

“I OUGHT TO SAY NO, No, no…” Eren trailed off as he froze mid spin and stared with wide eyes to his roommate.

“L-Levi, I-I uh thought you were um, coming b-back later? How long have you been here actually?”

“Long enough to hear you sing Christmas songs in the beginning of fucking November,” Levi replied snidely.

“Fuck…” Eren groaned and slid a hand to cover his darkening face. “Well, uh, I was making lunch if you wanted any.”

“What are you making?” Levi asked as he walked over to his room to change his clothes. He carelessly tossed his shirt onto his bed, not caring about wrinkles at the time. He gave his pants the same treatment and strolled over to his dresser. He dug around for some shorts he had and decided on wearing his favorite anime T-shirt, one from Free! Iwatobi Swim Club.

“Hamburgers and store bought lasagna,” Eren shouted back.

“Who the fuck eats lasagna with hamburgers?”

“I do! The lasagna will be ready in like 15 minutes and the burgers in 10. It’s actually really good! My friend Armin introduced me to this when I couldn’t decide between a burger and lasagna.” Levi was still shrugging on his shirt when he walked into the kitchen. As he pulled his head through, he caught Eren’s bright red face. “What?” he asked, suddenly self-conscious.

“N-nothing! Ah, I was, um, your abs are… really nice,” Eren trailed off.

Levi cracked a grin and chuckled. “Hard work and determination got these little fuckers,” he replied.

Eren spun around completely, his black apron fluttering. “You laughed! Oh my God, you actually laughed!”

“Yes, I laughed. I’m still a human being, you know. And what’s on your apron? I know it’s not just black.”

“Oh this?” Eren asked while showing his apron. “Just from a show I used to watch.” Levi’s eyes widened as he took in the scene. The characters were wearing green cloaks and wielding blades. Levi pressed a hand to his head before his kitchen dissolved before him.

_Levi was suddenly back at HQ. He clicked his tongue as he saw the mountain of paperwork before him; as usual, Hanji dumped her reports on him before dashing off to her goddamn laboratory. He began to read over some files when some names caught his eye. He was going to be assigned a new squad. They were a bunch of kids, practically fresh from training. He groaned; he would most definitely have to show them how to clean properly._

_“Whatever,” Levi sighed. He blew out his candle and walked out of his office, only to be greeted by bright eyes. Really bright eyes. They seemed to be a bit worried as well, like the person was panicking. Those eyes started to make Levi shake, getting wider and more worried with each shake. “Levi!” they shouted. “Levi! LEVI!”_

Levi blinked as his eyes refocused. He was in his living room now, not that…that… He couldn’t remember anything anymore. In front of him was still that big pair of bright eyes.

“Hey, Bright Eyes,” he whispered.

“Levi?” Eren breathed out.

“What?”

“Holy shit- you’re okay! You scared me!” Eren cried.

“Sorry. What happened?” Levi questioned slowly, his mind adjusting. “You looked at my apron, your eyes widened, and then you collapsed. I ran over to you, and your eyes were still open. They were darting back and forth, like you were reading something. I took the apron off since it seemed to trigger whatever that was and then your nose started bleeding. After that, I brought you over here and started trying to wake you up. Are you okay? Should I call someone?”

“No, I’m fine,” Levi said, looking away from Eren. He could feel blood rushing to his face.

“Levi, you’re blushing.”

“Shut the fuck up; I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. It’s spreading to your neck and ears.” Eren said slowly.

Levi placed his hands on Eren’s chest and shoved him away. “Then go put on a fucking shirt or something,” he demanded, still refusing to look Eren in the eye.

“A shirt?” Eren glanced down at his barely clothed body and connected the dots. He let out a loud laugh and Levi practically melted. “Levi, you dipshit.”

“Like you’re one to talk,” Levi fired back. He felt slender fingers grasp his chin gently and then he felt soft, slightly chapped lips press against his for a moment. Levi closed his eyes, and in a moment, that wonderful sensation was gone.

“Sorry, I’ve been wanting to do that for a while,” Eren admitted, scratching his head.

“Don’t be sorry,” Levi said softly as he reached out and pulled Eren down again for another kiss. Their mouths moved together as if they had done this for years, like they were made for each other. Levi ran his tongue over Eren’s bottom lip and Eren happily accepted the silent offer. Levi explored the inside of Eren’s mouth, mapping every inch and memorizing it. He could feel Eren affectionately doing the same to him. Then, Eren broke the kiss, gasping for the air he desperately needed. They both sat there, panting slightly staring at each other.

“Eren,” Levi asked in a low voice. “Do you want to go out with me? Preferably tonight?”

“Hell yes,” Eren breathed back in a voice just as low.

“Good, now go finish cooking before you burn the food.”

“SHIT!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell us what you thought?


	11. Chapter 8.9- Somewhere I Belong

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An interlude with a conflicted boy, one who's just been granted a mission.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all! We love you! Please continue to provide feedback~

Under his mask and cloak, Bertholt sweated nervously. The voice was angry, and when it was angry, the more expendable Titans were murdered. Hopefully, he’d be considered worthy enough to live for now, what with his odd ability.

“You mean to tell me,” they hissed. “That Lowe not only completely failed her mission, she deserted?”

Bertholt flinched. How could he explain to the voice that Mikasa had overheard him and Reiner speaking, and ran to intercept Annie? How could he say that Annie’s inability to fight Mikasa and Crimoisi’s interference had resulted in Justitiam’s escape and Mikasa defeating Annie easily? That Annie had walked right up to them after the confrontation and said that she’d have to choose Mikasa over the Titans?

He couldn’t. He couldn’t describe how she’d dropped her mask and crushed it beneath her heel. He couldn’t tell them how she’d turned away before softly telling them that she’d always have their backs, and was trying to give them an escape route.

“Yes…” he responded simply, lost in thought. Where did he belong, anyway? WIth Annie, or with Reiner and the Titans? He'd risk death either way.

“Stupid girl,” the voice growled. “I’ll have her killed despite that useless promise to her father.”

Bertholt suddenly felt someone’s gaze crawling over him and knew they were appraising him. “No matter the loss, one traitorous girl is not worth a setback in the mission. So, of course, we have to continue. I’ll dispatch someone else, perhaps Ape, to kill Akahime and that irritating Justitiam. Cramoisi… I would have left him alone, you see. Old ties, and he’s merely a petty thief. However, those who interfere must die too.”

Bertholt flinched again, harder this time, and prayed it went unnoticed under his cloak. Three of his friends and classmates as well as a hapless jewelry thief were going to die. Even if Eren had been killed, he’d have been happy because Annie, his childhood friend, hadn’t been sacrificed. But she’d made a mistake, and others were going to pay.

“As for you and the Armored, let’s deal a little blow to the lovely,” they spat the word condescendingly. “Reiss family. There’s no need for them to remain so secure in their power. Take a group and kill Historia Reiss.”

“Who is that?” Bertholt questioned cautiously. He didn’t remember anyone in the Reiss family with that name. It could’ve belonged to the matriarch of the family, but she was already dead, her throat slit by another gang years before.

“You know her, though she’s currently calling herself Krista Lenz.”

Bertholt inhaled sharply. Another friend lost, and with Krista, Ymir would go.

“Understand?” the voice snapped pointedly.

He lowered his head. How could he say no? “Yes.”

Krista Lenz- no, Historia Reiss, was going to die.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell us what you thought!


	12. Chapter 9- Far Too Young to Die

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lil more Ereri, and what happens to YumiKuri.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THANK YOU FOR 150+ KUDOS!
> 
> (Oh, and sorry to fans of the second and third Taken movies; it's just a mutual agreement in my family that they should've stopped at number one)

Eren and Levi, who currently knew nothing of Bertholt’s plight and Krista’s fate, were on the couch arguing about movies.

It all felt rather surreal to Eren. Merely days before, they’d been suffering through the “oh no, my roommate is hot” stage, and now they were, albeit awkwardly dating. He didn’t know how it had happened. The mutual glances had prompted him to do something unbelievably stupid, and Levi had miraculously gone along with it.

Eren had the nagging feeling that it wasn’t just the aesthetic attraction or the “I’m kinda interested in you” looks that had prompted Levi to agree. It was the weird flashbacks, the odd feeling of knowing him that had intensified dream after dream.

He realized his spacing out while thinking of their tentatively budding relationship had resulted in him automatically losing the argument. It looked like they were going to watch _Tak3n._

“Honestly, they should’ve stopped at number one.” Eren complained. “The second one was just… eh. I wonder how well this one will go…”

“It’ll be fine. Hopefully. If not, we’ll watch whatever you were prattling on about earlier.” Levi responded, absently toying with the remote.

Eren didn’t even watch half of the opening scene before he zoned out, thinking about a much more pressing issue involving violence.

What on earth was he going to tell Levi about being Justitiam now? It was easier to avoid the issue when they were roommates, but Eren was sure that when you were in a close relationship, you were supposed to tell your partners important things. But Eren couldn’t say anything about being Justitiam. Only Mikasa, Armin, Annie, and apparently, her friends knew about him being a vigilante. Not even Sasha and Connie, let alone Jean, Marco, Krista and Ymir knew about his night job.

Eren bit his lip. He wanted to say “to hell with it!” and just spill it. He wanted to tell Levi about everything from the thrill of running across rooftops to the angry and exhilarating rush he felt fighting or chasing Cramoisi. But of course, if Eren told him, Levi would probably worry like Mikasa had, which would lead to him potentially doing what Mikasa did. He couldn’t have Levi becoming a hero and getting hurt. Then again, it was unlikely he’d do that. Levi was pursuing law though…

That made Eren’s mind up. He wouldn’t tell Levi. At least not now.

Meanwhile, Levi was having the same problem, though he was a bit surer he wouldn’t tell his new boyfriend about being a notorious jewelry thief. After all, he didn’t want to scare him off.

The two turned their attention to the screen and proceeded to watch Liam Neeson’s mindless action scenes.

 

* * *

 

Hours later, Ymir lounged on a bar stool and sipped her whiskey with a nonchalant expression. She’d used a fake ID to get in, and it was doing wonders. However, her girlfriend’s rather pinched expression as she swirled her own drink around in its glass worried Ymir.

“Babe,” she finally asked. “What’s wrong? You look tense.”

Krista made a soft, distressed noise, and Ymir grew angry. Had someone said something to her? She quickly questioned Krista, who shook her head and set the glass down, looking toward the dance floor a level below them. Ymir searched the crowd with her eyes, trying to find the person unnerving Krista.

“I just… feel really uneasy, Yumi.” The blonde confided. “It’s like someone’s watching, and bad things are going to happen.” She set her jaw. “But it doesn’t matter. I’ll be fine.”

“You’re not fine,” the freckled girl replied gently. “Let’s go back home.” Krista acquiesced and got to her feet, sweeping invisible dust off her blue dress. Her heels made little clicking sounds on the wooden floor as she ghosted out after Ymir.

The night air was cool on Ymir’s face. She breathed in deeply, watching Krista out of the corner of her eye to see if she felt better. If anything, though, the blonde looked even more scared. Ymir ushered her forward and looked over her shoulder, trying to find a figure in the dark.

The walk was tense and rushed, the girls each searching the shadows for enemies. Soon they came to a roped off place in the sidewalk where there was only a giant hole. The only way around it was the busy street, and Ymir did not want Krista getting hit by a car. Quickly figuring out where they were, she tugged on the blonde’s arm to lead her down an alley that led to the place they were staying.

That proved to be a very bad idea rather quickly.

Figures dressed in white cloaks, with horrifying masks, swept out of the shadows, forming a loose circle around them. A tall figure stepped forward, apparently the leader. A smaller, burlier person followed them. They didn’t speak, only drifted around the girls, murmuring something in hushed tones.

“Krista,” Ymir whispered softly. “I’ll clear a path, and then you run.”

“Like hell!” Krista replied. “I’ll stay with you!”

Ymir grew edgier, seeing the Titans merely watch their panic. “Kris, they’re Titans. The Sina gang. They’ll have their fun… and kill us. I’m not letting that happen to you.”

“I won’t let it happen to myself!” Krista retorted, before she suddenly bent down, grabbed a broken pipe from the asphalt near the dumpster, and swung it at the nearest Titan’s head. It made a sickening crunch when it connected and shattered the person’s mask. They crumpled to the ground and Krista glared down at them mercilessly before whirling to face the leader. “I know what you want,” she growled, more dangerously than Ymir had ever heard her. “I am Historia Reiss, and you bitches,” she spat, pointing the pipe at the next Titan. “Aren’t going to do shit to me or Ymir.”

Ymir stared speechlessly at her tiny, threatening girlfriend. The tall figure stepped back a bit nervously. “Well,” they ordered the Titans in a tiny voice. “You outnumber them. Do your job.”

Ymir kicked off her heels and dropped into a fighting stance, ready to protect Krista’s back. If it came to it, there was no way she’d rather go. She’d just have to be a bit careful defending her head, which had taken the worst hit in her last fight.

The couple circled each other, back to back, the blonde taking swipes with her makeshift weapon and at one point kicking her shoe off so it hit an ungraceful opponent’s face and sent them into a trash bag. Ymir broke three Titan’s bones and knocked two out before she was caught from behind and wrenched to the ground. As she struggled, she turned to Krista, who was trying to move toward her.

“No, run-!”

The burly Titan grabbed her wrist and crushed it, forcing her to drop the pipe. Krista squealed in pain and Ymir growled, “Let go of her!”

The Titan kicked her down, firmly placing their boot on her back. Krista spat at them and tried to reach her pipe, resulting in another Titan smashing her fingers under their heel. Ymir tried to throw her captor off, though she was still focused on the burly Titan. Krista whimpered and Ymir gritted her teeth, waiting for an answer to her demand.

“No can do, sadly.” The person responded, actually sounding somewhat remorseful. “Say your goodbyes. We’ll give you a few minutes.”

Away from the scene, the taller figure flitted about indecisively.

The freckled girl lowered her head, wishing that Krista, at least, could be freed. She’d run with the Titans once, and had left. This was her punishment. But Krista had no reason to be killed, despite the Historia thing.

_I’ve never asked for anything, but please, God, save her!_

Someone answered her wordless plea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger, whoops.
> 
> Thanks for putting up with me, and I hoped you enjoyed.


	13. Chapter 10- Make a Move

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for your patience.

Another figure, dressed almost all in black, dropped from the roof of the adjacent building and crash landed on the asshole who’d stepped on Krista’s hand. Ymir heard a snap from their bones as the savior impacted them and stepped off the motionless body almost daintily, turning toward her.

Gold eyes, black mask. It was Justitiam, the town’s self proclaimed hero. Ymir had never seen him before, but she’d heard the stories of an angry boy who moved wicked fast and could kill with a few blows, though he usually only crippled.

From the opposite roof, Ymir heard a whooshing sound and her captor was knocked away from her and into the dumpster’s edge. Ymir turned to look over her shoulder as she scrambled toward Krista, who had been released. Behind her was a short man in a green cloak, wearing a red and black crow mask over his face. Cramoisi, the city’s most wanted robber, stood near the alley’s mouth, paying no mind to the white cloaks loitering around him.

The Titans grew edgier and the leader’s personal lackey snorted derisively. “Damn it, Lowe…”

“Armored…” the tall Titan admonished rather shakily.

Armored ignored them and coolly said, “I thought you two had learned to fuck with the Titans after our last fight.”

“Last time,” Cramoisi replied irritably, shrugging off his cloak. “You had a little lion do all your dirty work. She’s not here now, is she?”

The Titans murmured uneasily, restlessly shuffling when he mentioned Lowe. Ymir noticed the leader stiffen and shake their head like the memory of her was too painful.

Justitiam looked at Cramoisi with some measure of respect. “You’re helping.”

“To cover your ass, brat. You’re well meaning, but reckless as hell.” Cramoisi snapped. “Besides, I need some reprieve. You’ve chased me through half the town.”

Justitiam scowled and launched himself into the fight, perhaps to get away from the thief’s critical expression. The tall Titan stumbled backward, barely parrying the blow.

Behind them, Cramoisi had dispatched nearly all the remaining lower level Titans with a few blows. The remaining one attempted a knifehand; Cramoisi grabbed their wrist, threw them over his shoulder, and sent them onto the ground.

Meanwhile, Justitiam was close to winning his fight when Armored stepped in and knocked him into a wall with a broad sweep of their leg. “Wow, Colossus.” They said teasingly. “You’re so slow in fights. Lucky for you, you can take a lot of hits.” Justitiam spat and threw himself at his new opponent. Cramoisi leapt over a few bodies to engage Colossus before he could join Armored in baiting the vigilante.

“Kris, come on! Let’s get out of here while they’re occupied.” Ymir whispered. She hated running scared, but her pride wasn’t worth putting Krista in more danger, especially since they had originally been after her.

Krista stared fixedly at the warring fighters, ignoring Ymir. She winced, looking upset as Colossus avoided a blow that would have crippled them and knocked the thief fighting him off balance. He evaded the next kick as well, and Cramoisi narrowed his eyes in frustration, concentrating harder on the shaking Titan.

The Titan hummed uneasily and suddenly kicked Cramoisi backward, knocking him into Justitiam. The two fell over, and Colossus promptly grabbed Armored’s arm, dragging them off.

“Well, shit, and I almost won too.” Justitiam grumbled. “And isn’t that just caring; they left behind all their unconscious friends.” Cramoisi didn’t gratify him with a response, instead getting to his feet, grabbing his cloak, and starting to climb up the wall of the shorter building on the left.

“Oi-” The vigilante started angrily.

“Not today, brat.” Ymir distantly heard before the thief clambered over the edge and vanished.

The boy sighed and turned to them. “Are you both okay? Krista, I know your hand is hurt… anything else? Ymir?”

“How the hell do you know our names?” Ymir snapped before Krista could think about answering kindly.

The vigilante bit his lip. “Well, I guess you deserve to know…” In one smooth motion, he pulled off his black and gold mask. Though the vibrant gold eyes weren’t what they were used to seeing, Ymir and Krista knew damn well who Justitiam really was.

“Eren?” Krista asked in surprise.

Eren nodded rather shyly, looking away. Ymir noted the circles under his eyes and the darkening bruise on the side of his jaw in shock.

“You guys always wonder why I’m so tired, right?” he replied. “This… this is why. I go out on patrol pretty much every night. Five out of seven times I get into fights on the way, too.”

Ymir suddenly heard a muffled curse above them that sounded like Cramoisi. She hurriedly turned to Jus- Eren, who looked completely panicked.

“Shit, shit, I’m stupid- why didn’t I check?” he hissed, slipping his mask back on. “I really have to turn him in now! I can’t let anyone else find out about this, especially not some of his thief buddies!” he paused and frantically turned to them. “You guys are close to the university, right? You don’t need more help?”

“We’ll be fine, thanks.” Krista responded sweetly. “Thank you, Eren, and thank Cramoisi too.”

Ymir allowed her girlfriend to drag her off, though she was glancing over her back the entire way, watching Justitiam climb a network of pipes to reach the thief.

When she faced forward, Krista was gazing at her impassively. “Let them be for now, okay, Yumi? I have things to explain.”

 _Everyone has things to explain_ , the taller girl thought dazedly, eyes flickering back to where Eren had disappeared.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry...


	14. Chapter 11- Bad Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> //sorry, not sorry

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have fun reading!
> 
> Chibinico here! I love writing fights between these two>:D  
> I hope to have the next one out soon and I really hope you like it! 
> 
> Enjoy!!!

“Damn it!” Levi cursed aloud. What was Eren, of all people, doing? Why was he Justitiam, his nemesis? As Levi ran across the rooftops, desperate to escape, he couldn’t help but think about only hours earlier.

***

_Levi and Eren had been on a movie date in their apartment, watching Taken 3 on Levi’s shitty couch. When the movie ended, Eren had been fast asleep on his chest with Levi nearly following suit. When he finally let his eyes drift shut, his phone began buzzing. “Oh, fuck,” Levi complained, digging out the annoying cellphone. He glanced at the contact name and sighed; it read Hormonal Friend. Levi tapped the green accept button and placed the phone to his ear. “Hello, Isabel. Shouldn’t you be asleep?”_

_“Hell no! That’s not how you greet me!” Isabel shouted into the phone. “I need you to come down here. Farlan’s at a job interview, and I need some help.”_

_Levi glanced at the time before replying. “It’s nearly 10; why is Farlan at a job interview this late?”_

_“I dunno! He left around 7, but then he called me and said that the interviewer person wanted him to stay. But please Levi? I really need some help,” Isabel asked again._

_“Alright, I’ll be over really soon,” Levi reluctantly agreed._

_“Thanks, Big Bro! Also, bring Cramoisi! The stores around the apartment all closed early from some loud neighborhood renovations.”_

_“Okay, I’ll see you pretty soon and I’ll bring him.” Levi quickly hung up and glanced at Eren. He was still sleeping pretty soundly and with any luck, he’d be back in two hours. Levi gently placed a kiss on Eren’s forehead before he eased him off his chest._

_Eren opened one sleepy eye and peered up at his boyfriend as he felt himself be moved. “Levi? What’re you doing?” Eren asked with a yawn. Levi smiled softly and ruffled Eren’s hair._

_“Isabel called. She needs some help with something at her place. I’ll be back in two hours, tops, so just go back to sleep.”_

_Eren nodded and gave Levi a quick hug before pecking his cheek. “Get home safe, okay?” Levi grinned again and nodded. Then he stood and walked to his room. He quickly grabbed his mask, feathers, cloak, and suit and shoved them into a small bag. He shrugged on a black jacket and walked out of the apartment. The walk to Isabel’s place wasn’t that far, but it was still a bit of a nuisance._

_“I should get a motorcycle or something,” Levi grumbled to himself. After about 5 more minutes of walking, Levi came across the apartment building. He walked in and took the elevator up to the third floor. Isabel was standing outside her door, picking at her fingers. She turned her head when the elevator opened and grinned widely as Levi strode towards her._

_“You came, Big Bro!” She threw her arms around Levi’s neck and squeezed him tightly. “Come in! I have to tell you something really important!” Levi hugged Isabel gently and let himself be led into the small apartment. He raised his eyebrows when he saw Farlan sitting on the couch._

_“Isabel? What’s the meaning of this?” Levi hesitantly questioned. “You said Farlan wasn’t here.”_

_“I lied!” she replied cheerfully while making her way over to Farlan. “Okay, the real reason that Farlan and I called you here was,” she paused and dabbed at her suddenly wet eyes. “Shit, this means so much to me. Farlan, you tell him or I’m going to start bawling.”_

_“Okay,” Farlan replied with a grin. “Levi, we want you and Eren to-“_

_“Be the godparents of Farlan Jr.!” Isabel shrieked happily, while tears poured down her face. Farlan passed her a tissue that she gingerly accepted while Levi stood with his mouth hanging open and eyes wide._

_“Y-you’re joking right? Eren and I as godparents?” Isabel nodded her head fiercely and smiled widely._

_“If something were to ever happen to us, we wouldn’t want our kid to be raised by anyone else,” Farlan continued._

_“You realize I’m a criminal, right?” Levi joked._

_“Not by anyone else!” Isabel repeated sternly._

_Levi ran a hand over his face and thought carefully for a moment. “I’ll do it, but I have to ask Eren. I mean… we literally just started dating. I can’t just ask him for a commitment like that.” Levi reasoned cautiously, not wanting to upset Isabel. Said woman pouted slightly and pursed her lips._

_“That’s fine.” Farlan agreed. “Do you want to stay for a little bit before you go on a raid?”_

_“Only for a few minutes, but I need you tell me something important.” Levi demanded. The couple looked at him with wide, innocent eyes. “Please tell me that you aren’t naming that poor baby Farlan Jr. That is literally the worst fucking name ever.”_

_“You know, if we weren’t friends for so long, I’d be insulted,” Farlan laughed. “No, we don’t have a name yet. The pregnancy is still early, so we don’t even know if it’s a boy or girl.”_

_“It’s not that early!” Isabel protested. “I have a little bump! I bet they’ll be twins!”_

_Farlan blanched as he took in Isabel’s gamble. “Uh, sweetheart-“ Farlan faltered when Isabel snapped her head to face him and glared intensely._

_“I’m going to take that as my cue to leave,” Levi raised his bag up and walked to the bathroom with a smirk. “Good luck Farlan; you’ll need it.”_

_Before Levi closed the door, he heard Isabel start to yell angrily. As he stripped and changed into his Cramoisi outfit, he thought about the request. Godparents with Eren… It really was entirely too soon to ask him but it really had felt like they’ve been dating for months. Eren was special and important to Levi._

_He didn’t want to lose him._

_Levi placed his bag in the shower and slipped on the familiar black mask before turning to the bathroom window. He easily hoisted himself up onto the ledge and began to scale the wall towards the roof. His green cloak billowed behind him as he climbed higher and his hair fluttered slightly in the wind; it felt oddly familiar. When he finally approached the roof, Cramoisi glanced down. Isabel had been right; nearly all of the shops were closed with no one around. It was perfect for raiding. With a click of his tongue, the thief flung himself off the rooftop of the apartment building and through a window of a small watch store. He crossed his arms in front of his face to protect his face as the glass shattered and landed on a roll. An alarm began to blare loudly and Cramoisi swore. He quickly ran to the counter and smashed the glass with a fist before grabbing watches randomly and shoving them into his pockets. Within another minute, he ran from the shop and into a back alley._

_“Hey! There you are; stop!” Cramoisi rolled his eyes as he glanced behind him at the familiar voice. The stupid vigilante that wouldn’t stop riding his ass, Justitiam, had arrived yet again._

_“Isn’t it past your bedtime, kid? Go home,” Cramoisi retorted before beginning to scale the wall. The criminal climbed the wall without sparing a second glance, since he knew the other couldn’t scale walls like him. So he really wasn’t expecting, as he climbed over a gutter, to be tackled and forced to the ground._

_“If I had a dollar for every damn time you told me that...” Justitiam smartly replied from above Cramoisi. The latter promptly turned onto his back and drove his knee into the other’s stomach. Immediately, Justitiam’s grip loosened and Cramoisi wigged his way free. Both men froze when they heard a scream coming from an alley beside them._

_“Let her go!” another voice shouted._

_Justitiam instantly ran towards the edge of the building and jumped off, completely forgetting about his nemesis. Cramoisi groaned, leaping to the opposite rooftop, before reluctantly following suit. As his cape fluttered around him, a sense of calm came over him. There were people in white capes and odd masks all around them- Titans. Two girls were under one of the masked freaks. Cramoisi strolled over and threw the guy off one of them with a harsh kick to the side. He noticed Justitiam had crash landed on another Titan, surely breaking their bones._

_“You’re helping?” Justitiam asked, clearly shocked._

_“To cover your ass. You mean well, but you’re reckless as hell,” Cramoisi spat out._

_Without another word, he turned his attention back to the Titans and began fighting._

_It was not long before the white hooded freaks cleared out and left the two girls, Justitiam, and himself in the alley. While the vigilante helped and talked to the two girls, Cramoisi quickly crawled up to the nearest roof to get away._

_But the blood running through his veins went cold when he heard a familiar name._

_“Eren?”_

_Cramoisi nearly snapped his neck looking back so quickly._

_Justitiam had removed his mask. And the face underneath…_

***

“Hey! Cramoisi! Stop!” Justitiam shouted.

“Fuck off!” Levi yelled back, shaking himself out of his thoughts of the past. He couldn’t be thinking selfishly; when he donned the mask, he became Cramoisi. No one else.

“I know you saw me without my mask! I know you heard them call my name! I just have to talk to you about that!” the hero tried again.

“There’s no way in hell that you, Eren Jaeger, of all people… are Justitiam! I won’t believe that!” Cramoisi shouted.

There was a brief moment of silence save for the sound of feet hitting pavement.

“I never told you my last name,” Eren said with wide eyes. “Who are you?”

“Just leave me the hell alone!” Levi shouted. He had no choice but to escape. If Justitiam- no, Eren, found out who he was, it wouldn’t end well. All he had to do was get back to Farlan and Isabel’s apartment; then he’d be free. He just had to jump one more roof.

Once Cramoisi felt the hands on his shoulders, he knew it was over. As if in slow motion, he saw the sharp jab to the back of his knees and felt himself falling down. He hadn’t made it, and now he’d pay the price. As his head slammed into the ground, a loud snap pierced the air. The black mask was finally broken.

With it gone, Levi felt all his burdens fall back upon him. His Cramoisi persona vanished, leaving behind a hurting man. He felt himself being turned over, but he was in too much shock to fully comprehend what was happening to him. Dark silver eyes met gold ones and there was nothing but silence.

Eren crawled off Levi, drew his legs in, and wrapped his arms around them while keeping his eyes on the other. Levi imitated Eren and gazed longingly at his boyfriend.

“What the hell? What the hell, what the hell, what the hell, Levi!” Eren finally shouted. Levi stared at the other emotionlessly. “You’re Cramoisi? You are the person who I fight almost every week?! Y-You’re the master thief?!”

Levi continued to stare at Eren but kept silent. Eren leapt up and glared at Levi. “Answer me, damn it!”

“I thought it was pretty fucking obvious since it was my face that was behind that damn mask,” Levi spat out. “You’re the bastard who keeps trying to lock me up, eh? I can’t believe you.”

“What did I do?”

This time, Levi stood up and yanked his green cloak off. “You lied to me! About everything! I trusted you into my home, my life, my friends- every little thing and you’ve been lying to me! What for anyway? You’re a vigilante hero whom the town adores! Why would you keep that a secret from your boyfriend?!”

Eren clawed his mask off his face and threw it hard onto the ground. It shattered, but he didn’t care. “Don’t give me that shit, Levi! You are being the biggest fucking hypocrite I’ve ever seen. You needed help paying rent- that’s why you let me live with you. I met your friends because you were in the fucking hospital bleeding out! I came into your life because I thought I loved you! That’s not you trusting me with anything! They're coincidences! You’re blaming me for not telling you, but you lied about every fucking thing we did together!”

Eren began to raise his voice, not caring about being heard. “Right off the bat you told me you were in ‘study groups’ and that was why you wouldn’t be home! That was a lie! I bet when you told me you were attacked at a bar, that was a lie as well! You were probably covering your ass since you got the shit beaten out of you! Hell, think about tonight! You said you were going to Farlan and Isabel’s house! I bet you were lying about that too! What else are you lying about?” Eren yelled.

“I wasn’t lying about tonight! I did go to their apartment! Ask them!” Levi defended but Eren didn’t seem to hear him.

“Were you lying when you said you liked me? Huh? Was it all a plan of yours? Did you just want to fuck around? How do I know, Levi, if everything you say is a lie? There was another part of you that I never even knew about! How do I know that you aren’t cheating on me? Getting a prostitute whenever you have a successful night?”

“Eren, don’t make this about our relationship! I wasn’t lying then!”

"I can't trust you enough to think what you're saying is true! Why didn't you tell me about this, Levi? A relationship has to be honest! I would've told you about Justitiam, but were you ever going to tell me about Cramoisi?!"

“I did it to protect you! If you found out about me, you could’ve been targeted! You could’ve been used against me!”

“BULLSHIT!” Eren screamed. Tears were starting to drop slowly down his face. “Protect me, my ass! You just didn’t want to get caught! Fuck you, Levi!”

“What? Fuck me for being your boyfriend all of three days, and being a good roommate the other time?” Levi protested just as loudly. He could feel his eyes getting wet around the edges, but he tried to ignore the feeling.

“Don’t give me that! I know you felt it! We were meant for each other, and you just ruined it! You ruined everything with your lies and deception! Now… now you’re like dirty poison I can’t get out of my system! You’re toxic!”

“What are you saying? Do you not want to be with me?” Levi quietly asked.

“Yes! I’m saying that I want to break up! I never want to see you again, you piece of shit! I’m not going to let myself be ruined because of you. I fucking hate you!”

Eren didn’t bother to wipe his face dry when he stormed past Levi and jumped off the building.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...the bass line from Feel Good, Inc.


	15. Chapter 12- Unravel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angst. Tears. Pain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for almost 200 kudos!

Levi watched Eren’s figure retreat in silence. Tears still streamed down his face, but he didn’t bother trying to stop them. He didn’t bother to try and run after Eren, to try and convince him that he wasn’t lying when he said he liked him. As thunder crackled overhead, Levi squeezed his eyes shut and pressed the heels of his palms against them. He wanted to block the world out and ignore everything. He wanted to open his eyes and find himself back at the apartment with Eren’s angelic sleeping face in his lap. But once the first drop of rain hit his face, Levi cracked.   
  
When the rain began to fall harder, Levi dropped to his knees and let his pain overtake him. He didn’t give a single fuck if someone heard him or saw him; he ached. Levi breathed in deeply before letting out an ear-piercing scream. Lightning flashed above him but Levi didn’t care.  
  
“DAMN IT!” he screamed. Levi slammed his fist onto the cold, wet concrete and swore again. “Why! Why would he? Fucking bastard!” Thunder shook the building he was on and Levi shuddered. His eyes snapped open and darted around; he needed to take his anger out on something, anything.  
  
Then they fell upon a black mask that held so many secrets. Levi scrambled his way over to the mask and gripped the broken parts in his shaking hands.  
  
“It’s all your fucking fault!” Levi smashed the mask against the cement and watched as it broke into smaller pieces. It wasn’t enough, and Levi slammed the mask down again. Each piece that cracked off was slightly satisfying; it proved to him that anything he touched, regardless of his intentions, would end up fucked up and broken. He felt the familiar sting of pain as his fingers were scraped raw by the cement, but he ignored it. The storm raged as Levi stayed on the roof, breaking Cramoisi’s mask.  
  
“It’s all your fault! You did this!” he repeated like a mantra with each crack of the godforsaken mask. With a final hit, Levi found that the disguise was finally broken beyond repair. He relaxed his tense arms and looked for something else to break. He glanced at Eren’s own mask that was broken into three parts.  
  
The heaviness in his heart managed to double somehow as Levi took it carefully into his hands. He ran his bruised and bloodied fingers over the surface of the three parts and let out a quiet, broken sob.  
  
“It’s all my fault,” he whispered. “I should’ve told you. I’m so sorry Eren; I should have told you.” Levi curled himself into a tight ball, clutching the broken black and gold mask tightly to his chest. “I’m so sorry, Eren,” he began to chant softly to himself.

  
  
***

  
  
Levi wasn’t sure how long he stayed curled up on the rooftop, but he guessed it was a few hours. He hadn’t stopped crying and could tell that his eyes were swollen and puffy, but he didn’t give a shit about his appearance. The storm clouds had moved on, but it was still raining lightly.  
  
Levi sat up and wiped his hand across his face, trying to create a semblance of normality. He cringed however, when he felt the filth from his hand smear across his face. Levi had thought that he had already snapped, but when he felt the grime on his face trail down his body from the rain, he completely lost it. Calmly, Levi smiled and laughed to himself as he shakily stood up. He clutched onto Eren’s mask as if it was more important than his life and bent down to pick up his soaked green cloak. He left the broken remains of Cramoisi’s mask on the rooftop and carefully made his way to the edge, where Eren had walked hours prior. Without much energy, Levi jumped the final alley to land on Farlan and Isabel’s apartment building. As Levi landed on the ledge, his balance was overthrown due to the weight of the wet cloak on his back. He felt himself dangerously tip back, but his unsettling smile never wavered. He quickly balanced himself again and hopped down onto the new rooftop.  
  
Levi made his way to a locked door he knew led to the stairwell and picked its lock easily. He walked down at least four flights of stairs before coming to the third floor. He burst out the stairwell into the deserted hallway and walked slowly to his friends’ apartment door. Levi let himself in, locked the door again behind him, and made his way straight to the bathroom. He quickly stripped and changed back into regular clothes from the small bag he had left. Levi stuffed the thief’s suit and cloak into the bag without troubling to fold them and slipped it onto his back. Then he crept onto the window sill and silently leaped out of it.  
  
Stupidly, Levi didn’t try to cushion his three story drop properly. Right before he hit the ground, he threw his hands out to stop himself. He felt the skin rip off the palms of his hands as he skidded across the pavement; however, Levi honestly couldn’t bring himself to care. Instead, he chuckled and pulled himself up, brushing off some dirt from his pants with his bleeding hands.  
  
Levi made his way onto the street and began to walk aimlessly down several streets. Before he realized it, Levi found himself at Hanji and Moblit’s apartment building’s doorstep. Levi pressed the com button and called up to his close friend. He only needed to wait a few seconds to get a response.  
  
“Who the hell is insane enough to call me at this-,” Hanji began tiredly.  
  
“It’s me, Hanji.”  
  
“Levi? What are you-?”  
  
“He found out.” Levi whispered into the mic. “Eren found out.”  
  
Hanji was silent for a moment before she spoke again. “Come on up.”  
  
The door unlocked and Levi slipped inside the building. He made his way up to Hanji’s floor and was greeted by the brunette in an oversized T-shirt with her messy hair down as soon as the elevator doors opened. Hanji’s eyes widened and she slapped a hand over her mouth as she took in Levi’s ragged appearance. “Levi…”  
  
“He left me. He found out and left me, Hanji.” Levi smiled wider and swallowed hard to try and repress the tears starting to well up. Hanji wrapped an arm around his shoulder and led Levi gently into her apartment. Once inside, Hanji immediately ran to the kitchen to get the first aid kit while Levi sat down on the comforting couch.  
  
As Hanji took his hands, she looked up at Levi with eyes full of understanding and sadness. “Tell me what happened.”  
  
“I-I was on a raid when Justitiam found me. Then, we heard this scream from an alleyway and we both went to see if everything was okay. Titans from Sina were there, and we kicked their asses together.” Levi breathed in sharply as Hanji poured disinfectant onto his shredded hands and began to clean them. “A-after that, I heard him talking to the girls that were in danger, and I saw him take off his mask. Justitiam- Eren knew that I had seen so he started to chase me but…” Levi paused as his smile finally fell and the dam broke loose again. His voice thickened as he continued. “I couldn’t make it back to Isabel and Farlan’s in time, and my mask broke when he finally got me. H-he saw my face and got really angry, Hanji. Like, angrier than I’ve ever seen him or when he was acting as Justitiam. He…he said he couldn’t trust me anymore because I had always been lying to him. I was mad too but…” Levi hiccupped before he pushed out the final sentence. “He said that he never wants to see me again and that he hates me; and I deserve it.”  
  
Hanji finished wrapping Levi’s hands carefully. Then she stood and lifted Levi up from the couch, pulling him into her arms. Gently, she brought him close to her chest and sat back down, stroking Levi’s hair comfortingly as she kept silent. Levi leaned into her touch and cried harder into her shoulder.  
  
“I fucked up Hanji. I fucked up really bad. I- Eren, he’s everything to me- my whole fucking world. I love him so much. This’ll sound weird, but I think we were meant for each other. I get these visions where he’s there and we were happy. Even he admitted that we were special, b-but I ruined it.”  
  
“Shhh~, calm down Levi.” Hanji soothed. “Yes, you messed up by not telling Eren, especially if this bond you’re talking about is real. But you can’t give up yet. You have to fight for your love, fight until you’ve given it everything you have.”  
  
“How do I even do that? He hates me. He said ‘I fucking hate you.’”  
  
“Eren doesn’t hate you,” Hanji declared while she continued to stroke Levi’s wet hair. “He’s probably very upset and angry with you, but he doesn’t hate you. That much I’m sure of.”  
  
“Hanji you didn’t see him though. He’ll never take me back,” Levi thickly as he sniffled.  
  
“Why do you keep saying that?” Hanji pressed.  
  
“Because it’s a fucking fact. I’m a villain in his eyes, and as long as he knows that I’m Cramoisi, it'll stay that way. And he’s right about me. He said that he would’ve told me about his secret identity, but that I would never have told him about mine. And he’s right.”  
  
“Did you tell him why you do what you do? Did you tell him why you didn’t tell him?”  
  
“I told Eren everything! I told him the money goes to Farlan and Isabel and that I wanted to protect him. He didn’t believe me though; he thought I was lying again. H-he even asked if I was just using him for a nice fuck, or if I was seeing others after raids.” Hanji’s grip on him tightened as Levi shook with another wave of grief.  
  
“Levi, I’m going to be completely honest right now. Eren sounds like an emotional, overreacting idiot from what you just told me. Our past meeting told me that he’s a stubborn little fuck, and he sounds like he was acting like a bit of a prick tonight as well. Now, I need for you to answer me honestly, okay?” Levi nodded into her shoulder so Hanji continued. “Do you really want him back?”  
  
“Yes,” Levi answered strongly without hesitation.  
  
“Then I will do everything in my power to try and help you two. He’s most likely going to be a stubborn shit and not take you back immediately, so if you confront him tomorrow, don’t be hurt by the rejection. But just remember that even if he won’t admit it right now, Eren is still in love with you.” Hanji kept silent as Levi’s cries slowly came to a halt.  
  
After a few sniffles, Levi spoke again. “You really think so?”  
  
“I promise you,” she assured.  
  
“You look really fucking weird with your hair down, you know,” Levi replied through a sniffle to Hanji’s delight.  
  
“There’s the Levi I know and love,” Hanji laughed. “Do you want me to leave?”  
  
“No.” And so the pair sat there quietly save for the occasional sniffle. As Levi felt himself slip into sleep, he murmured aloud. “Hanji?”  
  
“Yeah?”  
  
“Thank you for this,” Levi muttered before allowing out a final yawn and letting the emotional exhaustion lull him to sleep.  
  
Hanji yawned as well and prepared to fall back asleep when she felt her phone buzz in her T-shirt pocket. With a grumble, she dug the phone out of the pocket and answered without looking at the flashing name. “Hello?”  
  
“HANJI! IS LEVI THERE WITH YOU? He was supposed to come back here after the raid, but he never showed up, and there’s water all over the floor, and his bag is gone, and I even found some blood!“  Isabel shouted into the line, nearly deafening Hanji.  
  
“Isabel, calm down, Levi is here with me. I got him cleaned up, but he’s still a little rough around the edges,” Hanji whispered, not wanting to wake Levi.  
  
“What the fuck happened?” the pregnant woman demanded.  
  
“You might want to sit down, it’s a long story.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...thanks for reading.


	16. Chapter 13- Listen!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi cries, Levi plans, and Eren gets some sense slapped into him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all your comments, kudos, and hits! We love you!

Levi woke the next morning wrapped in warm, strong arms. He smiled to himself and whispered, “Eren?”

“Sorry, babe. It’s Hanji,” his friend replied sadly. Suddenly, the events of the night before came crashing back down on Levi. He forced the urge to cry again away, merely burying his head in Hanji’s shoulder.

“What do I do now?” Levi groaned in a muffled voice.

“Isn’t it obvious, Levi? Go to Eren and get him back!” Hanji affirmed.

“Can I stay here if he doesn’t want to… take me back?” Levi hesitantly asked.

He glanced up to find Hanji nodding her head overenthusiastically. “But, Levi,” she warned. “Don’t forget, you’re still a college student. You both have classes to attend. When you go back to the apartment, you need to go when you know he’s always there.”

“He usually always comes home for lunch and works on projects until his next class around two.”

“Great! It’s 1:30 now. So if you hurry, you’ll be able to-" Hanji began.

“Wait, it’s already 1:30 in the fucking afternoon?” Levi exclaimed. “How long was I asleep?”

Hanji looked down at the small raven in her lap. “Well, you showed up around three, and then we talked for about thirty minutes or so, and then you fell asleep. Isabel called me freaking out about where you were, and then I had to explain to her what happened. So I didn’t fall asleep again until five.”

Levi stared at the brunette with wide eyes. “Y-You missed your med classes for me?” He asked in disbelief.

“Of course I did! That’s what friends do!”

With an iron grip on Levi’s shoulders, Hanji pried the man off her. Levi glared at her half-heartedly as she shook him.

“Don’t get all cozy on me! You need to leave now if you still want to reach Eren in time.” Levi willingly rose from Hanji’s lap and stretched himself out.

“Shit, what should I bring him? The flower shop is too far away…” Levi cursed.

Hanji merely cackled and walked him to the door. “Forget about bringing something. What’s important now is that you show up to apologize as soon as you can.”

Levi nodded at Hanji’s wisdom and thanked her once more before he ran down the hall towards the elevator.

To Levi’s delight, the elevator was empty when he stepped inside. Once the doors closed and he made his descent, Levi glanced at his reflection in the shiny doors. His hair was beyond help, at least until he could take a shower, and darker bags than normal hung under his eyes. His eyes were still faintly red, but no longer swollen, and his wrinkled clothes were stiff from drying oddly during his rest. Levi brushed off his exterior and focused on what exactly he’d say to Eren. He figured that Hanji was going to be right. Eren wouldn’t take him back today, but he had to make the first apology count.

The doors slowly opened on the ground floor, and Levi found himself hurrying back to Eren. He wove easily and quickly through the familiar foot traffic and nearly ran the last block. Levi heard complaints directed towards him as he shoved people aside, but he ignored them; if they knew what was at stake for him, they’d part like he was royalty. As he burst into his apartment complex, he heard the doorman greet him, but Levi didn’t pause to acknowledge the friendly man.

Forgetting about the elevator, he dashed up the 2 flights of stairs and burst onto the hall. Thankfully, the hallway was clear when Levi approached his own apartment door. He hesitantly raised his fist to knock and paused a moment.

Steeling his nerves, Levi pounded on the door. He held his breath as he heard the sound of someone moving inside, then the click of the lock being undone. Before Levi had any time to prepare himself, the door swung open to reveal Eren in sweatpants and a T-shirt. His brown hair was messier than usual and his vibrant eyes were dull. He wore a bland expression as he gazed at Levi and sighed before he started to swing the door shut.

Levi finally snapped out of his haze and threw his hands out to stop the door. “Eren, wait!” But Eren did not wait, instead leaving the door with another sigh. Levi followed him inside and sat down next to him on their couch. He watched as the brunette reached for his sketchbook and poured his attention into it. “Eren…”

“What is it, Levi? What more do you want from me?” Eren ground out. He pressed down so hard that his piece of charcoal broke as he worked on his drawing. With a huff, he tossed it onto a growing pile nearby.

“I want to apologize. I’m sorry for everything I did- the lies, the secrecy, hurting your feelings… everything. It’s just… I really was trying to protect you from my type of life. You really are the best thing that’s ever happened to me and I really do love you. Fuck, I love you so much Eren. I’d do anything for you, even take a bullet. Please, I want to be with you again; take me back,” Levi pleaded. He reached out to grasp Eren’s hand, but the other yanked his arm back before Levi could even brush his fingertips across it.

“An apology isn’t going to fix this, Levi.” Eren spat. “Now do me a favor; take your shit and get out of here.” Before Levi could utter another word, Eren stood with his sketchbook and charcoal bits and marched off to his room. Levi flinched when he heard the door slam, but he expected as much.

Reluctantly, Levi got off the couch and moved to his room. It was just as tidy as he had left it previously. His bed was made neatly with each pillow in its proper place. Despite everything being orderly, Levi couldn’t help but feel that everything was wrong and out of place. He shrugged off the feeling and grabbed a large bag under his bed. He hastily shoved as many clothes the bag could hold and then grabbed his textbooks he’d need for the next few days.

Levi sauntered over to Eren’s room briefly before he left. “Eren?”

“Get the fuck out of here, Levi!” an angry voice returned. Levi sighed deeply, leaving Eren in his room and wearily walking out of the apartment. Still, he decided to keep his head up. Hanji had told him that Eren probably wouldn’t accept the first day, right?

_3 days later…_

Levi was familiar with the bitter sting of rejection. He knew it all too well, and knew better than to give into the pain and misery it created. But after three days of Eren’s rejection, it was getter much harder to leave with his head held high. Even with Hanji’s kindness and help to back him up, Levi wasn’t sure about his efforts. Maybe he had to do something a little more. Maybe he had to-

“Mr. Ackerman, if you want to be a lawyer someday, I suggest you pay attention in my class.” Professor Zackley called, successfully jostling the short raven from his thoughts.

“Sorry.” Levi grunted, reluctantly turning his attention back to the class.

“Levi, are you okay?” Petra, who happened to sit next to him, asked. “I’ll be alright. Just don’t worry about me, okay?”

Levi could tell that Petra wasn’t buying what he just said to her, but she merely nodded and returned her attention to Zackley.

_A week later…_

Eren had stopped letting him in the apartment after he realized that Levi’s appearances would be daily. However, that did not hinder Levi. He would declare his love and wish for them to get back together through the door. He had also taken to leaving little gifts and notes for Eren. Primarily, they were different colored flowers, each with a different meaning. Hanji had suggested bringing flowers during one of Levi’s multiple breakdowns, and he became hooked on the idea. The elderly woman who ran the floral shop knew his name now.

Despite his confident façade, Levi’s resolve was beginning to waver. A complete week had gone by without an ounce of progress, despite him coming by every day. At the moment, Levi was pacing in front of Hanji’s couch, which had become his make-shift bed for the week. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration and increased his pacing speed.

“This isn’t working,” he snapped to himself. “I’ve told him I love him and that I’m sorry more times than I can count, but it’s not doing shit. I’ve left countless flowers and gifts…” Levi groaned and fell back onto the shitty couch. It was times like this when he was glad Hanji and Moblit had scheduled their classes together. The loneliness was… appropriate in an odd way; the way things were going with Eren, he’d be lonely a lot more often. Levi threw an arm across his eyes and tried to will the negative thoughts away. His weak efforts were quickly proven to be in vain when he wallowed deeper in self-hatred.

**Why would he want you anyway? Seriously, look at yourself. Just go away- it’s not like anyone would care. If Eren didn’t care enough to even acknowledge you when you said you loved him, why the hell would he care if you left? You’re not important enough. You’re just a filthy liar and _thief._**

“No! Shut the fuck up! I haven’t even gone on a raid since that night!” Levi yelled aloud. He shook his head vigorously trying to ignore the dark thoughts.

“Uh, Levi?” Said man froze at the sound of another voice. He lowered his arm and glanced over the room to find a concerned Hanji in the doorway. “Are you okay?”

“No, I’m not okay! Nothing is working,” Levi fumed before running another hand through his hair. “You said that he was still in love with me, but we haven’t moved forward at all! I’ve brought gifts, declared my love for him like an idiot in the hallway since he’s stopped letting me in the actual apartment, and I haven’t gone out to do a single raid for the past week. It’s getting so frustrating. I want, no, I _need_ him back with me, or else I’m going to lose it. What more can I do? Maybe I should just listen to him and go away… for a while.” Levi finished in nearly a whisper.

“Okay… first, don’t do it Levi. I know times are hard now, but trust me it’ll get better; suicide is never the answer.” Hanji began severely as she dropped her bags on the end opposite to Levi.

“I wasn’t talking about killing myself, Hanji. I meant turning myself in as Cramoisi. Eren wanted honesty…”

“Snap out of that mindset, Levi!” Hanji nearly shrieked at him. “What you do might not be that honest, but your reasons aren’t malicious! Farlan and Isabel! Those two! That’s why you do this- to give them a better life than your own. Secondly, yes, things are going to get rough, but that’s life. When you guys get past them, your relationship will be that much stronger. Let it work itself out-“

“Things can’t work out if Eren won’t even look at me!” Levi pointed out.

Hanji huffed and grabbed Levi’s shoulders tightly. “They. Will. I’m absolutely positive that Eren still loves you; just give him some time.” Levi looked into Hanji’s passionate eyes warily.

“Alright. I’m sorry about all this, but it’s just so hard. I know that things can’t go back to the way they were when I hadn’t met him yet. I need him by my side,” Levi muttered quietly.

Both Hanji and Levi flinched when the door burst open to reveal an oblivious Moblit holding a bag in his hand. “Surprise! I brought tacos! I didn’t know if you liked the guacamole on your taco, Levi, so I didn’t put any on. And before you ask, babe, yes, I got corn salsa for you.” When Moblit glanced at their bewildered expressions, he muttered a curse. “I just interrupted something really important, didn’t I?"

“No, you’re fine,” Levi answered quickly. “I was just telling Hanji about how hungry I was. Let’s go eat.”

_4 more days later…_

Levi was really trying. He was trying not to let his dark thoughts take over his mind. He was trying to remember Hanji’s constant words of assurance. But after yet again another day of rejection, it seemed like even his best efforts weren’t going to be enough. He came back to Hanji’s apartment late after an evening class he had with a shopping bag. His mind was scrambled, but he tried to ignore the screaming thoughts that he was a lying, thieving, piece of shit.

He walked over to the couch and sat down next to a sleeping Hanji. She had left the small TV on while she slept. As Levi started unloading his small shopping bag onto his lap, he noticed that the news program playing was the same one he saw earlier that day.

“And in two more days at noon, Mayor Reiss is scheduled to give a press conference regarding crime in the city. Now, we do not know yet if the two hottest topics will be addressed: Justitiam and Cramoisi. It does seem that vigilantism and theiving is becoming a larger problem in our city...”

As the reporter continued to talk, Levi tuned her out again. He moved with silent ease as he took out three basic, hard plastic masks and a bottle of super glue. Working quickly, he glued the three masks over each other for durability.

While Levi worked, he couldn’t help but remember a call he got from Isabel earlier that day.

_“LeviLeviLeviLevi! Guess what happened today!” Before he had a chance to answer, Isabel squealed loudly. “Farlan got a job! From a good paying shop too! This old woman was running a car shop, but she said that a lot of tasks were getting too hard! And Farlan showed up, and she offered him a job as her assistant! This is great! That means you don’t have to do your raids anymore! We’ve finally caught a break, big bro! Okay, I have to go… because technically I’m supposed to be working right now! But I’ll talk to you later, hopefully!”_

_There was a click on the other end and Levi remained where he was, in shock. Finally, he was relieved of his duty. And if Farlan and Isabel didn’t depend on him anymore, that meant he could-_

“L-Levi?” Hanji groaned as she began to wake up, successfully jolting Levi from his memories. Quickly, Levi placed a thick textbook over the materials on his lap and hid the shopping bag from Hanji’s sight. She yawned and turned off the TV with a click. “Sorry, I fell asleep on your bed. Glad you made it back safely.” As she yawned again, Hanji stood up and dragged herself off to her bed. “Good night! Don’t do anything stupid.”

“Good night,” Levi called back softly. He waited ten seconds after he heard the door close, then tossed the heavy textbook off his lap. He pulled the shopping bag back out and took out the small bottle of black paint he bought. “Can’t say I’m not doing anything stupid though…” Levi muttered to himself as he continued to recreate his old mask.

_2 days later…_

When Hanji came into the kitchen that morning, her stomach sunk. Instead of finding Levi, she found a note.

_Hanji,_

_Thanks for letting me stay here. I think it’s time for me to go, though. I’ll be at Isabel and Farlan’s. –Levi_

“Damn it, Levi!” Hanji yelled, whipping her phone out to call Isabel.

After three rings, the other woman picked up. “Hanji, this better be damn good for waking me up this early!” Isabel groaned.

“Is Levi there with you?”

“The fuck? No, he’s on your couch-“

“Isabel, Levi’s not here and he left me a note saying he’d be at your place. So is Levi there?” Hanji asked desperately.

“Oh no!” There was the sound of crinkling bedsheets and thundering feet. “Shit! He’s not here anymore, but he was! His phone is on the bathroom counter. Is he okay?”

“I don’t think so! He’s been having a hard time dealing with the break-up and-“

“Wait, still?! Where does Eren live?” Isabel demanded.

“He should be at Levi’s old apartment. Isabel, what are you going to do?” Hanji hesitated.

“I’m going to talk to that idiot, because this has gone on long enough. If he’s that stubborn, then someone else has to slap sense into him. He won’t listen to Levi? Fine! He’s sure as hell going to listen to me! Levi probably left during the night, so your chances of finding him now are slim to none. Tell his squad and Erwin what happened so that they can keep an eye out for him. I have to go now!” Isabel shouted into the phone before hanging up.

 

***

 

Eren rolled out of bed and walked into his bathroom. He brushed his teeth quickly before walking into the empty kitchen. He began to brew some coffee and grabbed his sketchbook from the counter, where he’d left it the night before. He opened it to his last sketch, sighing at another drawing of Levi. He could never forget those sharp eyes or neatly parted hair or soft lips. Eren shook his head, tearing the page from his sketchbook and placing it on the growing pile on the other end of the counter. He flinched as his silence was interrupted by frantic pounding on the door.

“Looks like he’s early today,” Eren said bitterly to himself.

“Eren Jaeger, you open this door right now or else I swear to God I’ll kick it down and then kick your ass!” a woman’s voice rang through the door.

Eren looked in surprise at the door. Whoever it was meant business.

“Jaeger!” the person shouted. “I am being 100% serious! Do NOT test an angry pregnant woman!”

“Who the hell did I offend who’s pregnant?” Eren muttered to himself as approached the door. He quickly undid the lock and opened the door to reveal…

“Isabel?”

“Yes, it’s Isabel. Who’d you really expect?” she declared as she stepped inside the apartment and slammed the door. Eren blushed when he realized he had spoken aloud. Isabel rolled her eyes at Eren’s embarrassment and grabbed his right ear tightly between her fingers.

“OW!” Eren yelped as he was dragged into the room and thrown onto the couch by the shorter woman. “What the hell?”

“Shut up! Just-” Isabel paused to groan and pull at her two small pigtails while she got her thoughts in order. “What the fuck is wrong with you, Eren? Honestly, I’ve never seen someone so stubborn! And I was practically raised by Levi!”

“Is that why you’re here? Him?” Eren asked, his happy mood instantly souring.

“Yes, that’s why I’m here!” Isabel nearly screamed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. “You both are so stupid, oh my god! Eren, why are you still pissed at Levi? Why are you torturing him?”

“The bastard lied to me since day one, so I have no incentive to trust him,” Eren shouted back.

“So basically, you’re mad at him for doing exactly what you did. Wow, hypocritical much? Julius fucking Caesar, Eren! That’s so incredibly shitty of you to hold him to that. Did you know that Levi forgave you for lying to him about two hours after your fight? That he wanted- no, he still wants you back, even after all this shit you’ve pulled? Wait, of course you know, since Hanji told me Levi’s been sending you gifts and declares his love for you _every damn day!_ I don’t think you realized how much he loves you or how much you’ve hurt him.”

“I bet he’s doing fine without me,” Eren protested.

“No, he’s not!” Isabel shouted back, her voice suddenly thick. Eren glanced up to find her close to tears. “Y-You don’t know Levi like I do. You weren’t there when he found me and Farlan struggling to get by as seniors in high school who had no one but each other. You don’t know how much shit he’s been through, both in this life and his previous one; I remember both clearly.”

“Wait,” Eren interrupted. “You remember… the past?”

“Yes, I do. I remember how Farlan and I died to a Titan while Levi wasn’t there. I know that in both lives, Levi was abandoned by his parents and was raised by a dick of an uncle for all of three grand years before he also left. What Levi’s been through is enough to break a person, but he never wanted anyone’s pity. No, he made a name for himself and worked his ass off to take care of all three of us. The only reason he took to studying law was so that he could be sure nothing he did to take care of us would earn him life in prison. The entire reason he lied to you was to protect me, my baby, and Farlan. And don’t you dare give him hell for it. I once could count on one hand how many times I’d seen Levi cry in all the years I've known him, but for these past two weeks alone, I’d have to use two hands. He’s been the happiest I’ve ever seen him with you, and you were an official couple for what, all of three days?”

“No… no. We have a bond like we were… meant for each other,” Eren whispered. “Do you think…?”

“Yes, I do. I think you were together in your previous life. Are you starting to see how much he cares for you now? He would do anything for you, Eren, and you know it! So what makes you think that he’d be fine after a break-up as rough as yours? And as for the lying, put yourself in his shoes. Would you come home to him one day and go ‘Hey, so I know we’re roommates and I don’t want to lie to you or anything so don’t freak out! But at night, I’m the master thief, Cramoisi. Oh, and could you not call the police please? Thanks.’”

Isabel finally plopped down on the couch next to Eren and slapped her hands against his cheeks, squishing his face. “I’m not saying that you had no right to be mad. What you don’t have the right to do is stay mad at him for all this time, even though you know you did the same thing. I can’t have my child’s godfather being so fucking stupid either.”

“Wait, what?” Eren exclaimed.

“Yeah, if you accept and Levi comes back, you guys are lil Farlan Jr.’s godparents!” Isabel cheered happily, releasing Eren’s face.

“I definitely accept, but I need to go talk to Levi first. You’re right about everything; I can’t believe I was so stupid and irrational. Where is he? You said if he comes back; did he go on a trip or something?” Eren asked slightly concerned.

Isabel’s happy expression disappeared at once. “We don’t know where he is. He was staying at Hanji’s place, but apparently he up and left in the middle of the night. He’s been depressed too, so he could be anywhere, doing anything.”

Eren jumped up and ran into his room to change while shouting questions at Isabel. “Did you call him?” He shrugged off his T-shirt and tossed on a fresh one. Then he grabbed his favorite pair of jeans and struggled to put them on.

“He left his phone at my apartment. We can’t contact him.” Isabel shouted back.

Eren ran back into the small living area. “I’m going out to look for him. You stay here in case Levi comes by again,” Eren ordered. Isabel nodded and leapt of the couch to give Eren a hug.

“I’m sorry I caused all of this,” Eren whispered into her hair.

“But I swear, I’m going to fix it somehow.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell us what you thought, and thank you for reading!


	17. Chapter 14- I'm Such An Idiot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren searches for Levi, who may be on the verge of doing something drastic.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have fun! Thank you for your comments, hits, and kudos! We love you!

Eren clamped his lip between his teeth as he jumped from rooftop to rooftop. He was so worried about Levi he could barely think; the only thing saving him from falling to his death while distracted was years of running the same route.

 _This is all my fault._ He hissed to himself. _Why was I so stubborn? God, I’m such an idiot…_

He’d made two rounds around the city by the time he looked up again, and he was sure he’d been spotted more than once, but he didn’t care. Since he hadn’t caught a glimpse of Levi, not even near the docks, he knew the other man was either in a building or had left town entirely. He was praying for the former. If Levi had left town, he would never find him nor would he ever forgive himself.

 _Where?_ The vigilante groaned.

Then he spotted the huge group of people.

_What- oh. Mayor Reiss’ press conference. Maybe… he might be in the crowd? It’s blocking the entire street. I have to try and find him. For Isabel if not myself!_

Hoping his uniform wouldn’t be too noticeable, Eren took off his mask and left it on the building’s awning. Jumping down was a slightly stressful experience when he was trying to go unnoticed, but the crowd was so invested in Rod that Eren might as well have been invisible.

Sneaking closer to the podium with his eyes scanning the masses was difficult, especially when the sea of people wouldn’t part. With much shoving and a few choice words, Eren made it close enough to hear what the mayor was saying.

“The biggest problem in this city is crime, specifically theft, and vigilantism.” The mayor declared, narrowing his eyes. “These fools are throwing their lives away and downplaying the achievements of the esteemed police force. If they want to help, the respectable route should be going into law enforcement, not donning a mask and acting like a big hero!”

The crowd roared in response and Eren gritted his teeth, looking at the gold shields on his inner wrists. The word “justice” was emblazoned over each symbol. Scoffing, he grumbled, “Esteemed police force, my ass.” He always made it to crime scenes before the cops, as did Mikasa. The real “biggest problem” would be the Titans or murder. He realized his attention had drifted too far away and turned back to the podium.

“…and that thief Cramoisi must be caught! He is scum as far as I am concerned, stealing jewels left and right as if people don’t make a living selling them! The Shiganshina Police Force has formed a special squad, dedicated to throwing his sorry ass in jail!”

Eren ground his teeth. _Even if I thought that about him when I was still so angry, what the hell does HE know about Levi? This pompous asshole… he makes me want to punch him. Dad always said he was a vile snake of a man, and that he’d throw own his family under the bus._

“Actually…” someone’s voice rang out. Eren tensed immediately, getting ready to fight just in case it was a Titan ready to attack the mayor.

_Eh? Why does that voice sound familiar?_

A figure sauntered onto the stage, an emerald green cloak covering their shoulders. A crow mask was fitted snugly over his face, obscuring all features save for a single, piercing blue-gray eye.

“There will be no need to ‘catch’ Cramoisi.”

Eren’s first delirious thought was, _“His mask is a little different, isn’t it?”_

His second thought was, _“Shit! What the hell is he doing?”_

Eren made to jump onto the stage, but the crowd grew suffocating as they realized who the figure was.

_No! They want his blood!_

Rod Reiss himself, for all his impassioned talk, looked terrified in Levi’s presence. He looked around frantically for guards, but there were none in the area. Cowering, he backed away from the infamous jewel thief.

_He’s never dealt with a fight, has he? With reality?_

Eren tried to reach the stage again when Levi calmly walked right past Reiss and to the podium. Adjusting the mic to his height and staring impassively at the people, he began to speak.

“You have been waiting to catch me, unmask me, and throw me in jail for years.” He began evenly. “You thought I was a plague, attacking you upstanding,” he spat the word derisively. “People, for a very long time. But today, I will spare you all the trouble and give myself up. I’ll be Cramoisi no more.”

Eren felt the blood drain out of his face. “NO!” He tried to scream, but the people’s rioting and shouts drowned him out. “Le- CRAMOISI! CAPTAIN! You can’t-!”

Levi took off his crow mask and tossed it aside. “I am Cramoisi.” He stated, closing his eyes. Eren was dimly aware of how dark the shadows under them were. They didn’t used to be that bad. “But my real name is Levi Ackerman.” Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he continued. “Justitiam… if you’re listening… you wanted honesty. For me to drop the charade, right? That’s what I’ll give.

“I steal things. I’ve done it for years, and done it well. However, I did it for the sake of someone else.

“So I am perfectly okay… with being turned in.” Levi lowered his head, and the sight was so unreal to Eren he began to laugh in shock, shaking his head.

Reiss, who had found a few officers, stood and pointed shakily at Levi.

“Apprehend this monster! There’s the chance you lot have been waiting for!”

Levi closed his eyes, hunching under his cloak. He placed his right fist over his heart ever so slowly and Eren’s breath stuck in his throat. His shoulders shook as he gazed upon the shell of a once proud man.

_This… this is wrong. All you wanted, so long ago… was to be free. To fly. How can you do that caged behind bars?_

Then Eren saw the bullet streak past, right before the guards gathered their wits and moved to trap Levi. It would have pierced Rod Reiss’ heart.

Would have, if Levi hadn’t spotted it and dove in the way.

Everything happened in slow motion. The crowd roared, and the officers whipped around to face the row of tall office buildings behind them. The mayor actually squeaked, furiously patting his chest. Levi crumpled, his cloak rapidly darkening and his eyes already closed as he sprawled across the grimy stage.

_Hey, don’t you hate filth?_

_Hey… Captain… can’t you answer me?_

Eren was sure that was when the remains of his fractured world crashed down around him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ...mmm whatcha say...


	18. Chapter 15- Miss Missing You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for putting up with this fic. You're all amazing! (4K HITS, EVERYONE!)

Now everything was happening too fast for Eren, and the world around him was blurring. He fought his way through the panicking people and scrambled up onto the stage at least, dropping to his knees beside Levi. The vigilante’s breathing was becoming shallow, the scene before him becoming hazy with tears. Eren ground his teeth and shook his head, forcing away his panic and fear. He leaned over Levi, checking the bullet hole near his heart.

Levi’s face was far too serene for the blood leaking out of the gunshot wound. Eren dimly heard one of the guards hiss to his partner, “Fuck, is that Justitiam?” He shook his head, ignoring them, and pressed Levi’s cloak to the wound, trying to apply pressure that would stem the blood flow.

Eren heard sirens and breathed in relief, knowing that the wounded man was going to get help soon. The vigilante distractedly realized that he’d gone into the detached state he entered in battle, which had dulled his thoughts and emotions. It wouldn’t be too long before the full force of his panic struck him again, but he needed Levi to know something while he was still coherent.

Ignoring the hovering guards, who had shuffled the ungrateful Reiss off, he leaned close to Levi, whispering urgently. “Levi, I’m sorry for everything. I’m so, so sorry, I was being a fucking idiot. I love you, okay? I love you. You can’t die on me; not again.”

EMTs rushed from the ambulance and onto the stage, swarming around the two. They loaded Levi onto a stretcher and taking him to the waiting vehicle. Eren followed immediately, quickly bullshitting a story about being Levi’s brother so he could ride with him to the hospital.

While the driver floored it, Eren’s phone buzzed, indicating that he had a text from Isabel.

_Hey, have you found big bro??? I know you’ve been looking real hard, and you have better luck than us…_

Eren cringed, nervous. How was he supposed to explain to Isabel that he had found Levi, and that he’d been fucking shot? Uneasily, he tapped out a return message, exhaling through his teeth. His “battle mode” was wearing off, and he was thankfully just becoming numb.

 **It’s your fault, you stubborn idiot. If he dies again, it’s your fault. Yours alone.** A voice mocked him in the back of his head, and Eren scowled, shaking his head more. violently than before. He focused on his phone.

_Isabel, I need you to not freak out, okay? But… oh, just turn on the news. You’ll probably find out._

_WHAT THE FUCK DID HE DO?!_ Eren could practically hear Isabel shriek the words she was texting.

 _He told the whole city who he was and got shot._ The boy admitted, quickly turning off his phone to avoid the shitstorm incoming. It would only make him feel worse; Levi would never have done this if not for him.

Then he realized they had reached the hospital, and hopped through the opened doors. Levi was rushed into the facility, and Eren heard someone say, “Get Carla Jaeger! She’s the only surgeon available!”

Ah. It was true; both his parents worked in the medical field, and this hospital was practically his mother’s second home. Carla had dealt with gunshot wounds before, but this was the only operation of hers Eren was invested in.

The police arrived, and the vigilante just knew they would take Levi into custody as soon as they could. It wasn’t like they respected his right to heal. Hell, they didn’t respect people’s right to live at times. Eren crossed his fingers.

 

* * *

 

Waiting was hell. He nervously texted Isabel again, and her clipped response informed him that everyone else that knew Levi had heard. By now, the entire city probably knew Levi and Cramoisi were one and the same, so it wasn’t surprising.

Eren hung his head and messaged Mikasa.

She swiftly responded, bluntly letting him know she thought he was in the wrong, but she would come to support him anyway.

His sister arrived before Isabel, bringing Annie and a confused, fretting Armin. Eren dully remembered that he hadn’t spoken to Armin in a long time. Yet here the blond was, worrying over Eren and wanting to take care of him. At least he hadn’t ruined that. The brown haired boy haltingly explained everything, picking at the golden shield symbols on his inner wrists more and more with each word.

“I’ll have to stitch that again,” Mikasa mumbled absentmindedly as Eren tore one symbol off entirely. He half shrugged, his stomach lurching. _Levi would hate that it was uneven…_

Isabel walked into the room, bringing Farlan, Hanji, and five people Eren had never spoken to before with her. The redhead strode over to him and regarded him with a cool expression.

“I should be angry. I have every right to be completely furious and beat the shit out of you.” She inhaled slowly. “But I’m not going to do that. Because I guess I would’ve reacted that way too.” Isabel paused, her oceanic eyes shining. “Will he be okay, though?”

Eren nodded listlessly and allowed Mikasa to explain that their mother was performing the surgery.

Meanwhile, Hanji spoke to the other five people, her enthusiasm dulled.

 _Are we gonna be okay?_ Eren wondered, worrying his lip with his teeth. _Can- can I fix this?_

Of course, even if he’d spoken aloud, no one could’ve given him an answer.

 

* * *

 

Somewhere else, the leader of the Titans chuckled darkly.

“So that was what he was up to. He certainly went soft when he was at it.” The voice paused, laughing eerily. “I wonder what Kuchel would say if she saw this… dear nephew.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once more, I'm sorry.


	19. Chapter 16- The Kids Aren't Alright

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a spiral of despair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, Chibi here! This was so weird, I had a blank page for literally almost a week then this happened over the course of like 4 hours...
> 
>  **Trigger alert for: violence/ violence against women** Be careful guys!!!

_“Levi, I can’t do it. I-I can’t transform into a titan,” his subordinate whispered gravely to him, facing the oncoming hoard of man eating beasts. “This is it for us.”_

_Levi gritted his teeth as he watched death creep upon them. “It’s okay, Eren. We’ve done our jobs; we’ve made it to your basement. There are others who can replace us. This just means we’ve got to go out in style, show them why we were known as Humanity’s Strongest and Hope,” the sharp eyed man replied strongly._

_“I don’t want you to die, Levi. Y-you… I mean, I… nothing, ever,” Eren hesitantly tried to speak. Tearing his eyes away from the mass of incoming titans, Levi stared at the scared boy. He reached a hand up and gripped his chin roughly so he could pull Eren down to his height. Without delay, Eren pressed his lips against Levi’s, savoring his taste for only a moment._

_“Just because we couldn’t be together in this life doesn’t mean that we can’t in another. Come find me again, okay?” Levi assured._

_Eren nodded quickly and set his eyes on the titans only a few meters away. “Can we play a game, Captain?”_

_“What?”_

_“Let’s see who kills the most titans. The winner is the real strongest!” the brunet declared as he hefted a broken sword in his right hand. Levi turned to face death in the eye as he grunted at Eren, accepting the challenge._

_“Good luck beating me then.” Levi quipped before leaping into action. He launched his Three-Dimensional Maneuvering Gear into the chest of a 15 meter titan and flew into the air, his tattered green cape flapping wildly behind him. His blades carved out the nape of the titan’s neck, completing the first of many kills. Similarly behind him, Eren scored his first kill with a cry of victory._

_They worked together effortlessly, reading each other’s actions rather than listening for orders, and titan after titan was slain. But their progress wasn’t enough. A piercing cry ripped through the air – and through Levi. The older man turned around with wide eyes and watched as his love was lowered into the mouth of a mindless beast._

_“No! EREN!” Levi aimed towards the titan and fired his 3DMG. He sped towards it with blades extended and ready to kill. A sickening crunch resounded through the air, and time froze. Levi felt numb as he kept his eyes on Eren’s cerulean ones. Eren’s eyes shone with tears but he smiled at Levi, as if he wasn’t in pain._

_“I love you, Levi,” he managed at barely more than a whisper. Then his world crumbled into black._

_Levi felt nothing but raw pain rip through him as he watched the light of Eren's eyes go out. The titan swallowed. He was gone; Eren was gone. Forever. And that thought tore him to pieces, starting with his heart. It felt like it shattered, and the only one who could put him back together was dead. Then his chest ached; it felt like it was on fire, and waves of heat emanated from his body. Despite the heat raging through him, Levi felt his fingertips and toes going numb._

A strong voice ripped through the memory, bringing Levi back to the present for a second. He blinked wearily and found he only had the strength to move his eyes. He glanced to the side of him and saw Eren fighting against people dressed in blue, trying to get close to him. “I have to be there though!” Eren kept protesting loudly as Levi was taken further from him. “Levi!” The black haired man tried to reach a hand out to the brunet, but he had no strength in him; everything was being drained from his chest. In the confusion, Levi was dragged back into his horrible memory.

All he felt before the world went dark was a titan snapping him in half.

***

 

The next time Levi woke, he felt sleepy and heavy. He looked to his left and saw through a window that the sun was setting. He scanned his right and froze. Sitting next to him was Eren, clutching his hand like his life depended on it. “E-Eren?” Levi whispered, voice too hoarse to speak properly. 

The younger man’s head snapped up, and he stared at Levi with tears in his eyes. “Levi! You’re awake? Oh my god, I’m so sorry. This whole thing is my fault. If I wasn’t such a stupid, stubborn idiot, you wouldn’t be shot or arrested or in the hospital and I just… I love you. I love you so much, so please forgive me.”

“Eren,” Levi murmured and hushed the brunet. “It’s okay… I just wish I… didn’t use my real name.” Eren huffed and playfully glared at Levi. 

“Yeah, the cops will be all over the both of us,” Eren replied. 

“What do you mean? I thought they were already on us?” Levi croaked, bringing a hand up to try and ease his throat. Eren stood and walked over to a small table that held water and a glass. He poured Levi the cup of water and returned to his bedside before speaking again. 

“I’m going to break you out tonight. Technically, they can’t arrest you while you’re unconscious, since you aren’t coherent to hear your rights. Mikasa and Annie volunteered their spare room to house you, and Hanji’s going to take care of you there.” Eren stated. “We’ll take care of changing your appearance and name later. For now, your safety is what matters most.” 

“No, Eren, this is not a good idea.” Levi answered softly. “I’ve stolen willingly and knowingly. I have to pay my dues.”

“No offense, Levi, but I don’t care. The police are ruthless to criminals they don’t particularly like, and you’ve managed to humiliate them. You evaded them for nearly 3 years and turned yourself in when they never had a clue about your real identity. They aren’t going to be nice to you at all. And… I’m not leaving you again.” Eren declared with a glint in his eyes. Knowing that he wouldn’t be able to convince him to make another choice, Levi sighed in resignation. 

“Okay, fine, I’ll go with your crazy plan. But you need to prioritize. I was shot because I was saving that annoying mayor. He’s a target, and we need to find out why. The Titans are interested in him for a reason and whatever it is; they want him dead for it. You need to figure out what they want while I’m out of the game.” Levi ordered. 

“Did you get a look at the shooter?” Eren questioned.

“I saw a mask, but that’s about it. It looked familiar, so the owner was probably there when that bunch snuck up on those two girls in the alley. It kind of looked like an ape to me,” Levi admitted, taking another sip of water. 

“Okay,” Eren muttered. His drew tightly together while he thought hard about who the man behind the mask was. “I have an idea about who to… ask.”

“Eren?” Levi hesitated. The brunet looked at Levi with nearly glowing eyes. “D-don’t do anything stupid.”

“It won’t be stupid.” Eren replied calmly. “I have to chase this trail before it goes cold. Hanji will stay with you until I come back later tonight. Stay safe Levi, and if the police come by, pretend you are unconscious.”

The raven nodded and let himself relax into the pillows. Eren kissed his hand and exited the room. 

Once Eren closed Levi’s door, he whipped out his phone and dialed Armin’s number. The blond picked up on the first ring with a very worried, “Hello?” 

“Armin, I need a ride to Annie and Mikasa’s. You mind?”

“Not at all; I’m already nearby, so just come outside the hospital,” his friend replied. 

“Perfect, thanks,” Eren breathed into the phone. He took the elevator down to the lobby and strolled out. The various stares he endured as he passed by annoyed him, but Eren decided to ignore them. The hero that most of the city loved had been revealed to be a young boy; their disbelief was well justified. The sliding doors parted for him as he walked through them and waited for Armin’s beat-up car to pull up. 

Soon enough, the familiar racket of a shitty engine alerted Eren to his friend’s arrival. He walked over to the source of the noise and was met with his smiling friend. Eren pulled open the passenger side door and managed a small smile as he slid in. “Thanks-” Eren began before he was promptly cut off. 

“No need to thank me for just being a good friend, Eren. Where to again?”

“Mikasa and Annie’s.” The drive began, slightly awkward, before Armin spoke up.

“So how’s Levi doing?” 

“He woke up, but I told him to fake being unconscious. Now the police can’t arrest him,” Eren sighed tiredly. “I’m going to break him out. He’ll lay low for a little bit until we can figure out who wants to kill the mayor.” 

“W-what?” Armin squeaked, gripping the wheel tight. The blood drained from his face. “W-what the hell’s been going on Eren? I’ve barely heard from you, and then I saw the press conference today, and now you’re talking about knowingly housing a criminal and- assassinations?”

“It’s too much to explain now, but I will later, I promise,” Eren replied. Armin turned the corner and pulled into a driveway of a small, red house. Before the car even stopped moving, Eren was out of the vehicle. He walked up the white front door and practically ripped it off the hinges. “ANNIE!” he roared. 

Mikasa came running from the nearby room in a dark green robe. Her hair was dripping, so he assumed she came from the shower. “Eren, what the fuck are you doing?!” 

“Where’s Annie? She’s been hiding something,” Eren snarled. 

“What are you talking about? She told us everything already!” 

“No, she didn’t. If she did, this wouldn't have happened!” Eren snapped back. “Tell me where she is!” 

“No,” Mikasa hissed. “Leave her alone, Eren. Levi getting shot wasn’t her fault; it was yours.” Eren’s eyes widened in shock at his sister’s harsh words. Words she meant. The weight of what fell from her mouth made Mikasa pause, cringing. “Eren, wait. That didn’t come out right. I didn’t-”

“You meant every word, Mikasa, and you know it. Just tell me where Annie is before I look for her myself,” he threatened. 

“She… she’s upstairs. In the bedroom,” the sliver eyed girl breathed. Eren pushed past his sister and made his way up the stairs, anger fueling each step. He walked down to the last door in the hall and yanked it open. Annie was sitting on the bed, reading a book when she jerked up in surprise. 

“Eren, stay away. I know why you’re here, but I swear I didn’t do anything,” the blonde immediately said clearly, not even stumbling over her words. 

“Someone who’s a part of the Titans did it. Someone with a mask that looks like an ape. Who are they and where can I find them?” Eren asked quietly. 

“I don’t know-“

“Bullshit.”

“I’m serious! I don’t know them!” Annie raised her impassive voice, standing up and crossing her arms.

“Okay, so you expect me to believe that even with your inside connections to the Titans, you don’t know who they sent to assassinate the mayor? That’s a load of shit and you know it,” Eren spat back at her. 

Annie’s face paled and she backed away from Eren, eyes widening slightly.

“R-Reiner and Bertholt never told me about that!” she stuttered, her voice beginning to waver with traces of fear. Eren stepped forward, and Annie stepped back, hitting the wall. 

“Annie, you are an incredibly shitty liar, you know that? Don’t waste my time and tell me what I need to know. Who is it?” Eren raised his voice. 

“I-I,” Annie stuttered breathlessly. “S-stay away from me, Eren! Mikasa! MIKASA!” She raised her fists, ready to fight him, but Eren easily pinned her to the wall. 

“You knew. You knew about the attempt, didn’t you? But you didn’t say anything,” Eren hissed into the shaking girl’s ear. “Tell me the truth, Annie.”

“Y-yes, I knew! But I swear I didn’t know that they were going to send Ape in to do the job, or that Levi was going to be there,” Annie cracked, the fear thoroughly coating her voice. 

“Who told you?” 

“I-It’s the reason that Titans came to this area. S-something about the Reiss family ticked off the boss, and we were supposed to kill them. H-he wants you, Levi, and Mikasa dead too. I-I couldn’t do it, so I left.”

Eren paused in his questioning long enough for the pieces to click into place. He himself was a threat and a target. Rod Reiss was a target, but not a threat. The boss had to be near if he knew about the press conference in time to deploy men. If he was nearby, he would pose a large threat to all of their safety. If Annie knew this, then that meant her other friends inside had to have known. 

“Eren, get your hands off her!” Mikasa shouted from close behind him. He could tell she was beyond pissed at him. Quickly, Eren asked another question. 

“Where’re Reiner and Bertholt? Are they still in?” Mikasa was tugging on his waist now.

“Yes, they didn’t desert. I’ve been trying to get them to leave, but they’re too scared.”

Another pair of arms wrapped around Eren, and he realized that Armin was also trying to pull him back. 

“Eren, let her go!” Armin yelled.

“Who’s the boss?” Eren growled. 

“Kenny. That’s all I know; he never told us his last name,” Annie cried out. Finally, Eren let go of Annie’s arms, letting himself get pulled back by his sister and friend. Mikasa dragged Eren to the hallway, while Armin left them to comfort the other blonde. Once the bedroom door closed, Mikasa roughly shoved Eren against the wall and slapped him hard enough for a picture to fall to the ground. 

“What the hell is wrong with you? You scared the shit out of my girlfriend and pinned her against a wall! If you wanted answers, you could’ve gotten them another way,” Mikasa snarled. 

“No, I couldn’t. She was holding secrets from us that involved our lives. Things that are bigger than us are happening, Mikasa. We need to all be on the same page, or else someone is going to die. If we don’t fight this, we are going to die.” Eren repeated, glaring at his sister. 

“Get out. Get out right now. Don’t come back until you’re ready to apologize to Annie.” Mikasa snapped, letting go of Eren and turning to enter her bedroom.


	20. Chapter 17- I Know What You Did in the Dark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eren has ways of getting Titans to talk... they're nearly legendary.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chibinico here! and OMG I'm am so sorry guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This chapter was so freaking hard to write and then my school started and then i realized ''oh shit i have no time!" Like I feel so bad, it's been nearly another month since last update... :O Speaking of updates though, they will most likely be pretty slow. Hopefully this fic will be finished by November so that it won't have to go on a hiatus for NaNoWriMo. 
> 
> Big thanks to everyone who is still supporting this fic and to **252 FREAKING KUDOS!!!!!** That's seriously so amazing and thanks guys!! WE LOVE YOU!!!
> 
> And one last thing, I will shamelessly promote my own fic right now!! I'm currently in the midst of writing a lil beauty called "3 Wishes"! If you read it already, great!! The next update is in the works! If not, go check it out!!!!!!! 
> 
> Ok, that's it i think. So enjoy your chappie~~~~

Sneaking Levi out of the hospital was not an easy task in the slightest. Without getting into specifics, it involved lots of lube, a wig, and suction cups… Eren felt himself shudder gently as Levi’s slicked up hair shifted in his lap and tickled his arm.

“Levi? Are you alright?” Eren asked immediately.

“I was shot in the chest and taken off my meds not even a day later. Take your best guess,” the raven groaned.

“I’m sorry,” Eren apologized for what felt like the hundredth time. “It’s all my fault, and I love you so much.”

“Stop saying sorry; you didn’t shoot me, some fucking monkey did. And I love you too.” Levi slowly managed to tug Eren’s hand into his own and held it tightly. “To be honest with you though, I feel a little weird.” Eren opened his mouth to reply but Hanji stole the words from his mouth.

“Describe your symptoms! I want to get practice diagnosing,” the brunette chatted happily as she drove closer to Mikasa and Annie’s home.

“Ugh, I’m not your test subject, Hanji. But I feel a little dizzy and my head hurts. And for the love of God, turn the fucking heat up; it’s freezing,” Levi grouched.

“Eren, check his pupils,” Hanji barked before jerking the wheel hard to the left, making the pair behind her slide hard to the right. Eren grunted but carefully gazed into Levi’s dark eyes. The dark haired man couldn’t help but smile as he observed Eren’s face. The brunet’s steely, determined gaze never left his own, and his tongue stuck out slightly to the side.

“They’re pretty small. I can barely see any black,” Eren muttered.

“Okay, then. Make sure Levi stays warm and try to keep him awake. There’s still morphine in his system... I think.” Hanji replied. “He can sleep once we get to the safe house.” Eren nodded and eagerly engulfed Levi into a tight hug.

“Eren~,” Levi groaned out. “You’re suffocating me; let go.” Eren loosened his grip, but kept his long arms wrapped securely around the smaller man.

"That's better," Levi huffed, snuggling into Eren's warm chest. Everything was so nice and comforting. Maybe a quick nap wouldn't-

"Which house do I turn into, Eren? Is it this one?" Hanji asked loudly as she turned the wheel towards a tall house. 

"No, don't turn here!" Eren yelled sharply. Levi's eyes snapped wide as the car lurched again out of the sharp turn.

“Fuck!” Levi cursed as the brunette’s horrendous driving drove any trace of fatigue away.

“I told you, it’s a _small_ house!” Eren sighed loudly.

Hanji merely chuckled and drove carefully for a moment. “I know; just didn’t want Levi falling asleep on us!”

“I’m not going to fall asleep with you at the wheel, lunatic,” Levi grumbled angrily as he clung to Eren’s shirt. The car finally turned onto the small driveway leading to Annie and Mikasa’s small home and pulled to a stop.

“Can you walk, Levi?” Eren asked gently as he began to unbuckle both of them. Levi shook his head and clung to Eren even tighter. “Alright – I’ll carry you in then.” The trio scrambled out of the car and briskly walked to the door. After knocking twice, the door opened to reveal a very cross looking Armin.

“Levi and Hanji can come in. Eren’s still kicked out,” the blond declared. Eren wordlessly handed Levi over to Hanji, ignoring the small raven’s weak protests, and looked at Armin.

“Eren, what did you do?” Levi asked loudly as he was led away. Eren in turn, did not answer, simply continuing to stare at his friend.

“Explain yourself. _Now,”_ Armin demanded as he stepped onto the small porch, closing the door behind him. Eren sighed but began from the time he and Levi broke up briefly to that evening. When he finished recounting his tale, Armin’s face was pale and sweaty with large eyes. “What the fuck have you been dealing with?” the little blond yelped. “We’re going to need a lot of disguises to protect you and Levi both now that the public has seen both your faces. Get your ass inside, there’s a lot to be discussed here.” Eren grinned cheekily and followed Armin into the warmth of the house. 

“Mikasa! Annie! Eren’s back!” Armin shouted as they walked up the stairs and down the hall to Levi’s temporary room.

By the time Eren made it inside to see Levi again, the shorter male was already curled up and sleeping on the bed. Hanji sat in a chair across from him, sleeping as well. At the sound of deep snores, Eren looked to Armin and shrugged. “Let’s talk again when Levi’s awake tomorrow. I bet this involves him too,” Eren proposed. Armin nodded and left the room with a quick good night. Soon the room was silent, with the exception of soft snores coming from Hanji. Feeling the weight of the day crash onto his shoulders, the green eyed boy stripped his shirt and jeans quickly to crawl into bed next to the little thief.

 

***

 

“Okay, so how is this going to work?” Mikasa asked the following night. The bunch of vigilantes sat in Levi’s room in a circle, ready to get to the bottom of the complicated web of deception and lies that they found themselves tangled in.

“First, explain to me what the hell is going on,” Levi pointed out. “Everyone here but me seems to know something, and it feels like there is a giant fucking elephant in the goddamn room.” Hanji snickered at Levi’s bluntness but kept her mouth shut and sealed tightly.

“Last night Eren came by and roughed Annie up for information on the assassination attempt; she apparently knew about it,” Mikasa answered Levi, never moving her glare from Annie. Just because Eren was an ass to her didn’t mean she got off the hook for putting all their lives at risk.

Levi’s eyes widened and he stared at his boyfriend sitting next to him. “Eren?”

“She knew more. I learned more. End of discussion,” the brunet allowed while keeping his head low. “Anyway, I know now that we’re all in actual, mortal danger. The Titans are here for a certain reason that we have yet to know. What we do know for sure about them is that they sent Ape to try and kill Mayor Reiss, a highly capable person, and Ape answers to the boss and only the boss, Kenny.” Eren paused to gather his thoughts when Levi’s hand shot form the covers to grip at his arm almost painfully tight.

“What. Is. His. Last. Name,” Levi hissed.

“None that we know of- Annie didn’t know him too well,” Eren replied. “Apparently. they just called him Kenny.”

“Let me guess; he probably wears a stupid, crisp suit and has slicked back greyish hair, a silver pistol in his pocket, and a stupid, long face,” Levi spat out. Annie raised her head in surprise but nodded slowly. “I thought so. That dirty bastard abandoned me to live on my own when I was still a kid; a real quality piece of shit.”

“You know him?” Eren asked, genuinely surprised.

“Yes, I do,” Levi sighed. “And if he’s involved in this, this is most likely a scheme to get power. Kenny will do anything to get authority.” The group of young adults fell silent after Levi’s words.

“Well, that is a good observation and all,” Hanji started slowly, “But it doesn’t prove anything. If we want to make a plan about this, we need to have more evidence so we don’t charge in under false pretenses.”

“How would we get the evidence then?” Eren wondered aloud.

“Inside sources,” Mikasa put forth. “Reiner and Bertholt are still in that group. We can meet up with them and see if our theory is correct.”

Annie, however, shook her head.

“They’re being closely monitored; this could get them killed,” she protested.

“Their job is an occupational hazard anyway,” Levi pointed out. “They need to grow the fuck up and get some balls.” Hanji snorted at his choice of words while Annie glared at him.

“Fuck you,” she muttered.

“That’s Eren’s job,” Levi retorted, the tension in the room dropping by a small amount at his words. Armin and Mikasa cringed slightly and eyed Levi as Hanji began to cackle. “But seriously, get on the phone with them and tell them anything you have to get them to meet with us.”

“Do it, Annie. You have to prove yourself to us,” Mikasa ordered. The blonde glared harshly at Levi, but pulled her phone out and stood to leave the room.

“How are we going to get them to talk?” Hanji asked curiously, resting her head on her hands.

“ _We_ aren’t going to do anything for the time being,” Eren interjected. “Levi needs to be resting and healing, not fighting and running.”  Levi opened his mouth to protest Eren’s decision, but winced when the movement caused pain to flare through his body. “Besides, Levi can’t go out looking like himself. We have to change his appearance.”

“I can dye his hair!” Hanji squealed excitedly. “I have a kit for blondish/white hair at home. I think he could pull it off pretty well!”

“We’re not dying my hair any color, Hanji,” Levi tried to interrupt.

“What about piercings, too?” Mikasa jumped in.

“Color contacts! Give him brown eyes,” Armin included. Eren laughed and nodded his head to all the suggestions.

“He’d look so damn sexy with an eyebrow piercing,” the brunet admitted. “You guys spend the night changing the way he looks, and I’ll go out with Annie to meet Bertholt and Reiner.” Mikasa rose her eyebrow suspiciously.  “I won’t get out of hand. Towards Annie,” Eren added as an afterthought.

“Oi, Eren,” Levi called out. “Be careful out there tonight. Kenny might send men to trail Bertolt and Reiner.” Eren nodded and sought out Levi’s fingers with his own, intertwining them gently.

“Eren,” Annie called from the doorway, dressed in her Titan get-up. “We need to go; they can only meet for a little bit.”

“Alright.” Eren leaned down to kiss Levi quickly and waved goodbye to the others before he followed Annie out of the room. He walked down the hall to Mikasa and Annie’s shared room and into the closet.

“What are you doing in there?” Annie asked as she watched him dig around.

“I’m looking for my clothes and mask,” Eren grunted as he moved a particularly large suitcase.

“You can’t be Justitiam anymore though; everyone saw your face under the mask,” Annie pointed out.

“I wasn’t always Justitiam,” the green eyed boy answered darkly, bringing out a black trash bag. “Let’s go.”

 

***

 

"Where did you say we were going to meet them?" Eren asked Annie as he followed her through several backroads and alleys.   
  
"The alley between Coral and 43rd Street," she replied as they expertly sprinted away from any prying eyes. Annie's voice sounded distorted as it echoed slightly through her old Titan mask. She swallowed a lump of nervousness in her throat and called out to Eren, "Turn left!"  He heeded her directions and they both silently ran down in the new direction.    
  
Up ahead, she spotted two figures, one taller than the other, leaning against the wall. As they became closer, she noticed that they looked fidgety, more so than usual. As she slowed her approach, she stuck an arm out to stop Eren. "I have to ask the code phrase," she explained as she noted his confused expression. She turned back to the two figures and shouted, "When we were in high school..."   
  
"It was us against the world," they both replied simultaneously. Annie lowered her arm and let Eren go to them.   
  
"Annie, stay here as a lookout. It's time for answers," Eren practically growled as he pulled out a small, grey, fabric bag and placed it over his head. Annie tried to contain her surprise, but a small gasp escaped her as she put the pieces of Eren's new outfit together. He wore a simple maroon plaid shirt, a grey tank top, and tattered jeans with black sneakers.  
  
"Rogue..." she whispered. Rogue turned and she shivered as the front of eerie mask faced her. It was simple, with two holes to see out of and a disturbingly bright red smile painted on half-heartedly. The person who had single-handedly destroyed most of Titan's base in Sina was standing in front of her.   
  
"Annie!" The tallest man called out as he saw a figure approach them.   
  
"Not exactly," Rogue replied. When he came into view, he watched both Bertholt and Reiner's faces pale in recognition. "Answer my questions, and I'll leave you alone." The pair nodded quickly, and Eren smirked behind the mask. "Who is Ape?"   
  
"We don't know. They don't trust us as much anymore because they think we're giving out information," Reiner admitted.   
  
"Fine, then. Why do you want the mayor dead?"   
  
"It was something about money. And if the mayor and his next in line was dead, then Kenny would be able to seize the power and wealth here,” Bertholt replied hastily. “We don’t really know much more than that, but I don’t understand why Kenny would want to rule over two cities.” Rogue paused the interrogation to think on the taller man’s words.

“Mayor Reiss doesn’t have a next in line,” he finally spoke. “You better not be lying to me.”

“I-I swear we aren’t!” Bertholt stammered. “H-he has a daughter, but she’s illegitimate! We tried to kill her before, but then Justitiam and that Cramoisi guy stopped us mid-attack.”

“Ere- I mean, Rogue!” Annie hissed from her lookout spot. “We’re going to have company real soon.”

Eren cursed quietly and narrowed his eyes. “Is there anything else going to happen? Are there anymore attempts on the mayor or his apparent daughter’s life?”

“I heard rumors,” Reiner started slowly. Rogue gritted his teeth and took an intimidating step towards the two Titans.

“What. Rumors.”

“Sometime next week! They were going to snatch the girl and trick the mayor into getting her back. We don’t know anything more; I heard a group of higher ranking Titans talking about it,” Reiner rushed out.

“What was the girl’s name?” Rogue asked quickly. As Bertholt opened his mouth to respond, Annie hissed out again.

“Time’s up; we have to go!” The small blonde darted out from her hiding spot and grabbed Rogue’s arm. Despite his protests, Annie kept a firm grip on the other’s arm and ran to the side of an apartment building. She jumped up and managed to grab a rung on the fire escape ladder before climbing up. The other masked man followed quietly behind her, and they stopped to catch their breaths on the rooftop. Eren ripped the grey bag from his head and ran a head through his chocolate locks.

“Shit. We’re going to have a lot of work to do by next week,” he panted. “Starting with finding that girl. Oh, and Annie,” Eren waited until his green eyes met sharp blue to continue. “Don’t tell anyone about this,” he ordered gesturing to the mask in his hand. Annie nodded and took her mask off as well.

“We need to be getting back now, or Mikasa will come out to look for us.”

 

***

 

Annie and Eren both stumbled back into the house well past midnight, though everyone was still awake and anxious. Telling them the new information had shaken everyone more than anyone cared to admit. Except for Levi.

“Well, it sounds like something Kenny would do. Also, it looks like we’re in for a giant shit,” he deadpanned. His awful sense of humor allowed for the mood to rise slightly. Eren chuckled quietly and murmured something to himself. Levi grinned and looked over to Eren. “What’s so funny, Bright Eyes?”

“Nothing. I’m just laughing at the fact that you're the only one who can say that and make people laugh.” Eren snickered.

“It’s because I’m so fucking hilarious that anything I say will always be funny,” the new blond replied.

“It’s just like the times you joke about being a being a power bottom! Your face and voice is all serious, but it’s still really funny!” Hanji offered. Both Eren and Levi’s faces were frozen with in shock as they looked at Hanji, but the wave of red creeping over their faces was noticeable. Hanji pouted when no one laughed at her tidbit. “Wasn’t that funny? I mean, I always thought Eren was gonna bottom between you two. Isn’t that funny? Why isn’t anyone laughing?”

“Run,” Armin whispered to Hanji. Only then did the brunette see Levi’s murderous expression.

“Oh, SHIT!” Hanji screamed as she sprinted away from the angry midget.

“HANJI, GET YOUR ASS BACK HERE SO I CAN KICK IT TO THE NEXT FUCKING CENTURY!” Levi roared. The others laughed heartily as they watched Levi pin Hanji against the front door with his temporary cane. She turned the knob to run outside to her car, but ran headfirst into a small blonde girl.

“Krista?” Eren asked, momentarily distracted enough not to see Hanji slip from the doorway.

“I-I need your help. I have to tell you guys something important.” Levi nodded and escorted her to the room with the others.

“Krista? What are you doing here?” Eren piped.

“I-I,” Krista stuttered as tears welled up in her eyes. She fell to her knees with a harsh thud and began to sob. “The Titans- they have Ymir! And it’s all my fault!”

Eren immediately left his place on the couch to try and comfort the sobbing girl. “It’s not your fault,” he began to tell her, but Krista clutched his shirt in her surprisingly strong grip.

“It is! It’s because I’m the one they were looking for! I-I’m Historia Reiss, next in line to the current mayor, my father!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading!!!!!
> 
> Seriously, you readers are the best.


	21. Chapter 18- Promise

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for over 5K hits and 262 kudos!!! We love you!!!

There was a shattering crack as the girl’s head was batted aside by the force of her attacker’s blow. Coughing and snarling despite her aching jaw, she spat out a tooth. The white object was accompanied by a mouthful of blood when it clattered to the grimy floor. The captive was sure that the floor was stained with much more than blood, but it was too dark to see.

“Well, well, Ymir, aren’t you still fun to play with?” The cloaked figure sang. Their Titan mask was askew, but Ymir couldn’t figure out who they were. The brown haired girl sneered darkly, spitting out more blood so she could answer.

“Untie me and let me beat the shit out of you; then we’ll see how much fun I can be, you bitch.” Ymir growled. She strained against the ropes lashed around her wrists and ankles again, but it was no use. She’d been unconscious when she’d been tied up, and no matter how taut or relaxed she became, she had no room to wiggle out of her bonds.

 “So foul-mouthed, as usual. Are you really a lady?” The Titan snapped disapprovingly before slapping her hard. Ymir winced. She’d taken worse, but that side of her face had been struck three times already. It stung, and blood was caked on her jaw from a cut.

“I don’t give a damn how unladylike you think my cussing is, little fuck. Where the hell is Krista?”

“Your precious Historia? Well, she’s fun too! But in other ways. I’m sure you can figure out how, provided you aren’t as slow as you are unsophisticated.” They tossed their head smugly, looking at Ymir through the eerie mask.

The freckled girl’s eyes widened in shock and horror as she processed the implications of the asshole’s statement. “Leave her alone- give her back to me, you bastard! How dare you?!”

The Titan skipped out of Ymir’s admittedly small reach, laughing. “Your reactions are hilarious. I’m sure her screams are better though. In fact, I’ll leave you be and go hear them now! Ta ta, little Ymir!”

Ymir slumped in the hard chair, panting and terrified. Praying to a God she didn’t believe in, she hoped that Krista was going to be okay.

_I can’t help her. Someone, please… please- save Krista._

 

* * *

 

Mikasa reviewed the little list of Titan hideouts, glancing every now and then at the screen of Annie’s laptop. The blonde was getting blueprints of every hideout and trying to ascertain where the Titans would be grouped together. She’d also been assigned the task of finding Ymir.

Meanwhile, Armin and Eren were calming down the hysterical Kris- Historia, and Hanji was changing Levi’s appearance in the bathroom. The vigilante wasn’t sure what was going on in there, but she’d heard “SHITTY FOUR EYED FUCK!” and “WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!” within seconds of each other before a loud crash.

Side-eyeing her girlfriend, the Asian girl worried her lip between her teeth. Annie looked immensely stressed out, and she wondered if it was because of the Titans or what Eren had done earlier. Setting down the lists, Mikasa moved closer to the blue eyed girl and loosely wrapped her arms around that thin frame. Annie relaxed marginally; Mikasa didn’t give physical affection out like candy, but she was always rather passionate and gentle when she did.

“Annie?” The gray eyed girl asked softly. “What happened? Are you okay?”

Annie sighed, abandoning her surveillance and curling into Mikasa. “Have… have you ever heard of Rogue? The vigilante who…”

“Destroyed the Titans’ base in Sina all by himself?” She finished her girlfriend’s sentence, eyebrows knitting together in confusion. “Who hasn’t? He’s a psychopath, isn’t he? Kills with monstrous strength and no remorse. They thought he was on some kind of limitation removing drug because he’s so unnaturally powerful. Why are you asking?”

When Annie next spoke, her voice barely rose above a whisper. “Who do you know that has incentive, hatred, and a dark side? Who… who gets what he wants, by any means necessary, if it’s important?”

Mikasa froze, putting the pieces together as quickly as possible. Who had been scaring Annie so much lately? Who’d fatally wound if need be, although he preached not doing it? Who had promised to “kill all the Titans”?

“Eren…” she murmured, shell shocked. “My brother… my brother is Rogue?”

Annie nodded solemnly. “Just now, when we went to meet Reiner and Bertholt, he came with the mask and everything. It was like… like he totally changed. I don’t normally get scared, but it was like he was a different person. And you know, Mika, your parents are both in the medical field. If one of them brought home an experimental drug, and Eren got a hold of it, then it might’ve been able to jack up his adrenaline. That’s how he became limitless, and got strong enough to rip people to shreds.”

Mikasa sunk to the ground. She’d known about her brother’s rage, and she knew he was skilled and had enough incentive to commit all those murders. But the amount of destruction… she still remembered the horror. How had she never noticed?

“Well,” she muttered hollowly, steeling her resolve. “I won’t say anything of it now. If we can stop the Titans here with that kind of power… it’s okay.”

Annie faced her down, eyes like chips of ice. “And if he goes too far again? Will you really be “okay” with that? Will your parents?”

“They still don’t know!” The black haired girl defended. “I will talk to him about this. And it won’t be just me keeping him in check; I’ll tell Levi too. He deserves to know, mostly because keeping secrets almost destroyed them once.”

The blonde’s face softened. She moved to hug Mikasa, and gently pulled her back to their work. “I understand what you’re going through. I’ll do some extra research, try to find out about the drug and how to keep Eren safe. It’ll be fine.”

The girls returned to their information gathering, sitting in companionable silence until they were called to living room to get Historia’s full story. Mikasa looked at the list, which had two probable Ymir locations on it, and sighed.

She wasn’t sure when her life had gotten so complicated.

 

* * *

 

“Okay!” Eren chirped with false calmness and joviality. “Historia, will you please tell the girls and Levi what you told me and Armin?”

The short blonde stared him down. “Don’t bullshit; I’m not five. I’m fine now, just a little shaken.” She rubbed her bare arms and turned to Mikasa, Annie, and Hanji. Levi had yet to come out of the bathroom, but if Eren knew him, he was probably listening just as intently. Historia brushed her bangs out of her eyes and began.

“Ymir and I… I guess we’re really unlucky. We got attacked by the Titans before, but that time, we got help from Justitiam and Cramoisi. The reason they keep attacking us- it’s not actually shitty luck, but because I’m Mayor Reiss’ daughter. I’m just… illegitimate. He never liked me, and neither did Mom. When we started suspecting a threat, I just changed my name and acted like a normal kid. I liked being Krista- I could leave that confined and privileged life behind. But now, since he almost died, and these white cloaked bastards are running around, I have to be Historia Reiss again.” Sighing, she fidgeted. “We were out on a walk tonight when it happened. They came out of nowhere, and I ran. I had to; that’s what Ymir wanted. She said she’d be behind me, but she got captured.”

“We’ll get her back!” Hanji cheered. “But we have to wait until tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Krista hissed, jumping out of her seat. “Ymir could be dead tomorrow!”

“Well, the healing accelerant drugs I gave Levi won’t fully kick in till then!” Hanji replied, furrowing her brows in confusion. “He’s dead set on coming, for some reason. We could really use another fighter, considering I’m more of a medic, and you’re not trained enough.”

“Also, about lack of us ‘good guys’; Reiner and Bertholt aren’t really guaranteed to help us.” Annie chimed in. “Levi has to come.”

“What?” Eren shrieked incredulously. “Hell no; he’s staying here! He got shot!”

Levi stormed out of the bathroom at that, eyes narrowed. Eren had to pause and stare, because his once pitch black hair was pale blond. HIs eyes had been turned dark brown, and ohh, those piercings really were sexy.

“You can’t tell me what to do,” The short man began. “I’ve made some stupid fucking decisions, I know, but this won’t be one of them. I’m going to be on the same side as you. I’m going to fight on the same side as you. One more time.”

“Yes, Captain!” The green eyed boy answered automatically. He heard confused murmuring from the others, but Levi’s gentle smile at the “inside joke” held all his attention.

“I’ll be careful, I promise.” Levi soothed, making his way to his boyfriend and gently holding his hand.

Although Eren fully believed in him, he knew what he had to do to keep Levi safe.

_I have to take NZT. Then… then I’ll really be Rogue again._

Turning to Mikasa, the brunet asked her what locations she and Annie had found and digitally staked out.

Mikasa promptly brought out her list and gave the locations of two warehouses near the docks. “We’re… as foolish as it may be, I think we’re going to have to split up. And Eren, I will be going with you, no matter what.”

Eren blanched, but he knew there was no convincing her. She was going to find out about Rogue, then. _Fantastic. Well, if it gets Ymir back and kills more Titans, it’ll be worth it._ He thought. _But I don’t want my own family scared of me…_

“So, it’ll be me and Annie at Warehouse 3?” Levi asked. The Asian girl nodded resolutely.

“Armin and Krista- sorry, Historia- will provide 'tech support' via wires and headsets. Hanji will be on site as a medic. Reiner and Bertholt will hopefully be in the vicinity.” She paused before speaking again. “Levi… it seems Warehouse 3 is a bigger operations center that has been dug out. It goes rather far beneath ground, and we think that’s where Kenny is hiding. I think it’ll be prudent for you to deal with that, as you have… history.”

“Tch. Of course that bastard’s just hiding underground. What else would he do? I’ll take care of it- you two focus on your friend.”

Eren nodded firmly, solemnly gazing at Historia. “We’ll get her back. I swear.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See you next time! I hope you enjoyed!
> 
> Quick disclaimer! The drug NZT is borrowed from the show Limitless, although in the series, it removes mental limits and makes the user smarter. Here, NZT removes physical limits, essentially turning Eren into Shizuo from Durarara!!.


	22. PSA

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not a chapter!

Tomorrow, as many of you know, is November 1st. That marks the beginning of an event called... NaNoWriMo.

Thus, the authors will be focusing on other works and will not be updating, sadly.

This story's gonna end soon, and when we return, I promise we'll try to make the final chapter(s) the best they can be. We love you all! See you in December!


	23. Just A Note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> just a quick note

Hello! Chibinico here! 

 

It's been a while so I have decided to make a quick announcement about the fic! 

1) IT'S NOT ABANDONED! Yeah so we know there hasn't been a chapter out since October but after NaNo came lots of schooling, work, and tests *shudders at the memory*  

 

2) The next chapter is in the process so there should be an update in about 2 weeks or so. It's good to be back!

 

3) A GIANT FREAKING THANK YOU! We're nearing 6K hits and that's incredible!!! Not to mention the 281 kudos?!?! You guys are awesome and thank you so much!!!! It's really appreciated! WE love you all~

 

See you all really soon! -Chibi 


	24. Chapter 19: We Were Doomed From the Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final fight against the Titans has began.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WE'RE BACK AS PROMISED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
> (chibinico btw) It's great to be back honestly!!!!
> 
> Warnings!: mentions of blood, violence, graphic scenes, drug mentions. (read at your own discretion) 
> 
> Enjoy~

“Let him go, you sick monster!” Mikasa screamed, struggling against her restraints. Thick, coarse ropes bound her wrists behind the metal pole her torso was strapped to, but that did not deter her efforts to break free. She couldn’t let that man hurt Eren; she’d never be able to forgive herself. 

“I ain’t no monster,” Kenny replied with a wide smile, his southern accent strong. “But I’m takin’ one out.” He brandished a long, serrated knife and knelt over where Eren was tied with his head hung.

“Ymir! Ymir, do something!” Mikasa shouted desperately.

“I can’t do anything! They nailed the fucking chair to the floor,” the other girl growled as she too fought her restraints.

Kenny let out a dark chuckle and roughly grabbed a handful of Eren’s hair before yanking him up; the vigilante let out a soft whimper as his head was jerked violently. Kenny pressed the tip of his knife into Eren’s jugular, feeling his quickening pulse. “I dunno, maybe I am a monster. I jus’ love the sound of my victim’s lil pleas fer mercy; the feelin’ of their rushin’ pulse. Heh, I didn’t get the name Kenny the Ripper for nothin’.”

“NO! STOP!” Mikasa screamed as she thrashed in her bindings, but the blood had already begun to stain the knife at her brother’s neck. “EREN!” This wasn’t supposed to be happening. They’d had a plan! Things were supposed to work out…

 

 

***

_1 hour earlier…_

Eren and Mikasa slowly trekked through the warehouse district, the latter with a bag in tow. Nearly all of the buildings looked the same, with dark exteriors, garage doors at the front, and large numbers painted on the sides; they were the perfect grounds to house illegal activities with minimal suspicion.

As if he read her mind, Eren spoke into the com. “This is such a typical place for crimes to occur. The cops stopped searching here after their giant bust on a ring of merchants.”

Mikasa chuckled for a moment along with Armin but kept quiet and alert as they walked. The snow covered gravel path they walked upon crunched underneath Eren’s sneakers. Somehow, Mikasa’s black boots were silent as they navigated the pathway with ease. They wore regular clothes, not wanting to attract unwanted attention with their suits even though it seemed that the place was devoid of life.

“Armin,” Eren began as he pressed down softly on the wire his friend had set up earlier. “How’s Levi?”

“Eren, you need to focus on your own mission,” the blond boy scolded. “Historia is taking care of them; anything important will be relayed to everyone.”

“I know, I know. I’m just a little paranoid that this’ll go wrong,” Eren admitted. “It’s not like I’m not prepared, but I’d rather shit didn’t hit the fan.” His free hand snaked down to pat the back pocket of his black jeans, where he kept his hidden bottle of NZT, an action not missed by his observant sister.

“Eren, keep your voice down,” she chided. “We don’t want to alert any Titans to our position.”

“Mikasa’s right, Eren,” Armin agreed. “Your warehouse will be on your right after you make this next turn. Its number is 67.” The brunet hushed his words with only a grumble but put his senses on high alert. They couldn’t afford to be ambushed before they had even made it inside. Following the icy path, Eren and Mikasa sneakily crept around the turn with their eyes glued to their right side. Before them stood another warehouse identical to the others, with the exception of the large garage door in the front being open slightly.

“The garage door should be open, but don’t go in that way,” Armin instructed. “My sensors are telling me that a large concentration of enemy forces are near there.”

“What about Ymir?” Mikasa asked. “Can you see where she’s being held?”

“Let me check,” Armin murmured as the sound of clicking filled their ears. “I’m getting several rooms with just one person inside. Wait a minute,” he said as another short round of tapping filled their ears. “Okay, I refute my last statement. There are several rooms with one person, but only three of them have people standing outside them. I’m willing to bet those are people are guards. Using our knowledge, I’d bet that they are housing the most important people we know.”

“That would be Ymir and two others, then. But who are the others?” Eren hissed.

“I’m not sure who the others are, but the chances that you’ll be in a greater danger than expected are quite high. Be on guard,” Armin warned.

“Do you think Ape could be here?” Mikasa whispered into her com. “I thought he might’ve been with Kenny underground where Levi’s headed.”

“I doubt he is,” Armin explained. “Kenny is the head of the Titans, so it wouldn’t make sense for him to need a guard, therefore eliminating him from our list of three. Ape is powerful, but we don’t know much about him, so it’s possible he could be in a room.”

“What if they took someone else in?” Eren suddenly whispered. “What if-“

“Look, guys, I’m just speculating with the facts we have,” Armin interrupted. “I don’t know who’s in those three rooms, so you’ll just have to do your best. You need to go in now; the ambush force is starting to move out of their positions. If they spread away too far, infiltration success rates will drop significantly.”

“Where’s the best place to go in, then?”

“The side with the giant 67,” he answered. “There should be a window around the second floor. There’s no one guarding that area- my sensors don’t indicate anyone there. If you hoist each other up, I’m sure you’ll be able to make it."

Mikasa took one last glance around before she dashed towards the building’s left side with Eren hot on her heels. Without stopping, Eren interwove his fingers and ran in front of his sister. She ran up to him and jumped onto his hands. With the ease that came only from practice, he launched her up to the window ledge then left to look around. There still wasn’t a soul in sight.

“Eren! Hurry up!” Mikasa hissed loudly from inside the building. As she watched Eren bound over and simply climb up the wall with his bare hands, Mikasa quickly backed away from the open window and shoved the NZT bottle she managed to steal during her launch into her sports bra for safe-keeping. She couldn’t let Eren use it again; it was morally wrong and against everything Justitium stood for. With a quiet thud, Eren fell onto the floor of the room. He stood quickly and brushed off his pants out of habit.

“Okay, we’re in.” Mikasa murmured into the com.

“Good,” Armin replied. “I’d change into your stealth clothes, and get ready to search for Ymir.” Quickly, the pair began to change. Mikasa stripped off her gray university hoodie and smoothed down her Akahime suit. She secured her red scarf around her neck and just over the slight bump between her breasts before opening the bag she carried. Hastily, Mikasa shoved her hoodie into the bag and placed it on the ground. Beside her, Eren shed his silver vest and unrolled his red, plaid sleeves. He took the bag from the floor and reached inside quickly to bring out a new pair of black ankle boots. After switching them, he crammed his vest and sneakers into the bag and zipped it closed.

“Alright, we’re ready to move,” Eren snapped. “Where do we go?"

“First, drop the clothes somewhere no one will find them. Then you’ll want to pace the halls.”

“Well, we’re in a bedroom right now,” Mikasa objected. “I’ll just put the bag under the bed.” She grabbed it from Eren’s hands before carrying out her intentions.

“Wait a second, what the hell?” Armin huffed into their mics. “Guys, I’m picking up on something new. I just did another scan of the building, and I found another floor. It’s underground, like a tunnel of sorts. It’s out of my range of sensors, so I can’t tell much more than that.”

“Do you know which direction it’s leading?” Eren asked.

“No. I’d just be a lot more careful. If this is a route to someplace, you may have strong Titans circulating through it,” Armin advised, sounding somewhat grave.

“What if it’s connecting somewhere like you said,” Mikasa whispered. “The most logical place would be Warehouse 3, isn’t it? It’d be an escape route for Kenny if anything were to happen in the houses."

“That’s a good idea, Mikasa.” Eren agreed. “But if that’s the case, then we need to scope out Ymir as soon as we can so that we can investigate them.”

“You may be able to kill two birds with one stone,” Armin suggested. “I’m thinking that the best place to hide a target would be underground. That way, you lure in your enemies to a confined place where they can’t escape.”

“So this is a trap?” Eren questioned in a hushed tone.

“Yes, I’m fairly certain. But that being said, you need to be incredibly cautious not to let yourselves be caught recklessly,” Armin replied. “Don’t forget: their mission is to make sure you’re dead.” The pair of siblings nodded and approached the door. “Godspeed, you two. I’ll be here if you need me.” Once the com was silent, Mikasa gripped the doorknob and twisted it slowly to the right.

Silently, the door swung open and the two heroes exited the bedroom. Like Armin had told them, it was deserted. Eren crept forward first, slowly walking down the hallway. The warehouse’s interior was dark and smelled slightly musty, as if fresh air hadn’t circulated its insides in years. The hallway they crept down was built with incorrectly installed wooden planks. Eren took a hesitant step forward and cringed as the board squeaked under his foot. The intruders froze in their spots, not even daring to breathe. They listened hard, but there were no voices that suddenly quieted or feet that bounded up the stairs. Feeling slightly more in control of the situation, the siblings continued to creep forward. Eren stared hard at the floor, being twice as careful not to be heard.

“Shit,” Mikasa swore under her breath. “Eren, look up.” Heeding his sister’s advice, Eren glanced up and felt his stomach drop. The hallway they walked up opened into a one-sided balcony right beside the large group of forces assembled behind the garage door. At the other end of the balcony was simply a staircase leading down to the ground floor. “We can’t pass them without being discovered.”

“Yes we can; we just need to make a diversion,” Eren excitedly replied back. “This is just like back in the day.” Eren and Mikasa both shared a sly grin and retreated a few steps away from the balcony's entrance. They knelt down and began to pick at the wooden planks. Catching a good one, Eren began to unscrew its nail with his fingers. It slipped out easy enough, and he advanced to the next one. Mikasa joined in as well, patiently unscrewing the tighter nails in the board.

“Ah, shit,” he hissed. The black haired girl glanced up with concern, but he waved her off. “Just a splinter, nothing too serious.” She nodded, and they silently went back to work while slowly ripping the skin from their fingers. As another screw came loose, Eren began to tug the plank from its spot on the ground, yet to his disappointment, it didn’t budge.

“Let me try,” his partner in justice suggested. With one solid tug, Mikasa pulled the plank from the ground and handed it to Eren. He grasped the board in his capable hands and placed it on his knee. As quietly as he could, Eren broke the board in half and handed one half to Mikasa.

They glanced at each other briefly before Mikasa dashed off to the other end of the balcony with her piece of wood. Once in place, she tapped the cherry blossom sewn on her body suit. Eren nodded and stood on shaky legs. Swallowing his fear, he aimed for the middle of wall opposite of him at a small window. Taking a deep breath, he hurled the piece of wood at the window as hard as he could. The deafening silence was shattered along with the window.

“Hey, what was that?!” a man shouted below. “It must be Justitiam!” The group of men began to move toward the broken window, shouting slurs and jousting their weapons. In the commotion, Mikasa slipped down the stairs as quiet as a cat and ducked underneath the staircase. There she looked around the room. There was a door that led outside and two others that led to the unknown.

“Armin,” she missed into the com quietly. “Which door leads to the basement?”

“The metal one,” their Intel reported back instantaneously. The hero looked around again, eyes roaming over each structure carefully until they came across a metal door a few windows down from where Eren threw his piece of wood.

“Where is he?” someone asked. “Was it a decoy?”

“He’s probably gonna come in from the back!” another shouted. Quickly, Mikasa darted from under the staircase and hefted her own wooden plank across the room to the furthest window she could find. By some miracle, her aim was good, and the window shattered with ease.

“Back! In the back! I heard another window break!” The group of armed men hastily ran to the back of the warehouse and away from the metal door. Eren watched from above as the men began to run out of his sight. Taking the chance, Eren swung himself onto the staircase railing and slid down easily. He vaulted off before he could crash onto the floor and landed with a slight hobble next to Mikasa.

“Where to now?” he asked.

“The basement,” she whispered back before sprinting to the metal door. She tucked her shoulder down and slammed into the door, knocking it open easily. “Get in!” Eren scrambled into the doorway and tested his weight against the first stair. It held without any squeak of protest and slowly he began to descend. Mikasa quickly closed the door behind them and followed her brother down the dark steps. “Watch your step,” she warned. “There’s no light down here.” Eren hummed in acknowledgement and continued to descend.

 

***

 

The stairs seemed to last forever as they were still trying to reach its end. They were creeping along each step so cautiously that Eren’s muscles seemed to be eternally taut. He climbed down another step before freezing in place. Mikasa continued on and ran into Eren in the process. She gasped quietly but just loud enough for Eren to hear.

“Why did you stop?” she hissed.

“Voices,” he whispered to Mikasa as she huffed angrily in his ear. They both began to hurry their pace and crept down the stairs in earnest, trying to reach the voice. The closer they got, the more bits of conversation were exposed.

“…new room? Why are they moving her?” There was a pause in the deep voice, as if they were listening to the other. “He’s here? You think Rogue showed up? Well, if that’s the case, then I’ll stay alert down here.”  Eren and Mikasa finally crept down the last step and watched the man from behind. He was fairly tall, with blond hair sticking up behind his mask. “Say, what was the new room number again? Okay, got it.” The guard dropped his hand from his ear and com and sighed.

Eren turned to Mikasa, pointed to the guard, and then held up three fingers. She nodded, understanding his silent signal and watched as he lowered each finger slowly.

As the last was lowered, the pair sprang into action. Mikasa charged at him from behind and slammed him against the wall of the tunnel. He let out a muffled gasp, and Eren took it as his cue to remove the mask. He yanked it off, breaking the string holding it to the other’s face off in one sharp pull and glared down at the man.

At least, until he recognized those features: full lips, arched eyebrows, and a sharp jawline. “Reiner,” he sighed in relief. Mikasa let him go, and the blond sunk to the ground, clutching at his chest.

“Jesus, guys,” he panted. “I figured you’d find a way down here, so I wanted to help you. I know where Ymir is, and if we hurry, we may be able to save her.” Reiner forced himself back up and began to walk down the tunnel with an unspoken invitation to follow him.

“Save her? Is she okay?” Mikasa asked while following the changed Titan.

“No, Ape has been torturing her for information,” Reiner revealed. “I’ve been wanting to break her out, but he’s been assigning me to smaller, less important roles lately. I had to beg just to guard the tunnels today.” The sound of their shoes clacking quietly against the hard rock floor filled the awkward pause between the unlikely trio. “Uhh, do you guys have equipment to break through chains? I don’t have her key.” They came to a fork in the tunnel and Reiner turned right. They followed him still, this time answering him.

“We’ll figure it out. Will you be able to cover us until we find a way out?” Mikasa coldly replied.

“I can only try. Bert’s with the others in Warehouse 3, so it’ll be harder to do alone,” the blond admitted. They came to a halt in front of a steel door, and Reiner pushed it open, careful not to make any noise. “Psst. Ymir… Ymir, say something if you can hear me.”

“She can’t hear you. but I can,” a new, bone-chilling voice replied. Eren and Mikasa quickly shied away from the door frame but kept close enough to just see what was going on. The blood in Eren’s veins ran cold as he registered the mask his eyes landed upon. It was _their_ mask: Ape. “You are a traitor, Reiner.”

“N-no,” Reiner stammered as he took a hesitant step back. “I-I’m a warrior…”

“Really,” Ape began as he stood tall, his furry mask twisted into a smile. Eren’s eyes widened as they landed on his weapons. In one hand he carried a short, serrated knife with a thick handle, and in the other, a large gun. “You know, if you’re planning on betraying a top organization like the Titans, you should learn to turn off your com.”

“M-m-my com?” Reiner whispered, fear dripping from his voice. He stepped back again as Ape approached closer. “Eren, Mikasa,” he shouted suddenly. “Run! I’ll hold him off-“

His final plea was cut short as the dagger Eren saw in Ape’s hand was imbedded into Reiner’s jugular. Both Mikasa and Eren watched with wide eyes as their one-time friend fell to the ground, convulsing, as blood readily streamed from his mouth and throat. Mikasa clenched her jaw and revealed herself, darting down to try and save Reiner. She firmly pressed her shaking hands to his throat around the knife but watched as his movements continued to slow. Sluggishly, he lifted one hand to grasp at her wrist.

“Reiner,” Mikasa whispered with sorrow.

The blond’s lips moved quickly, like he was trying to say his last words. “Bertholt…l-loved h-him…” Reiner managed quickly. He shuddered and coughed up blood, but steadily clung to Mikasa’s wrist as tightly as he could. “…mir. R-room 2…2….t….” Reiner coughed again, this time much weaker, and slumped down to the ground. There he lay, quiet and still.

“Finally. That blond’s been a royal pain in my ass,” Ape remarked over Reiner’s dead body. “Now that he’s out of the way, I think it’s time we’ve met, eh?” Mikasa clicked her tongue but didn’t stick around. She grabbed the knife from Reiner’s throat and threw it towards Ape’s thigh. Without looking to see if the throw was good, she grabbed Eren’s hand and ran down the hall where they came.

“We need to get out of here,” she hissed. Eren couldn’t agree more.

“Armin. Armin!” He called. Their line, however, remained silent. “Fuck, we’re out of range!” The pair ran behind the turn before they could hear the steady increase of Ape’s approach behind them. This was looking bad… but, maybe… Eren reached into his back pocket and pulled out his Rogue mask. He tugged it onto his head, just over his eyes so that he could take the NZT beforehand. But… but where was it? The brunet ravenously searched his pockets. The bottle wasn’t large enough to possibly lose by accident, but no one knew where he was keeping it.

“Mikasa, have you see-“ Eren was interrupted by the sound of shots firing. Immediately, the pair ducked and sprinted to the upcoming fork in the hallway. Mikasa dove into a roll towards the stem of the fork, and Eren followed. Just as they were hidden away, a small chunk of the rock and concrete corner of the wall exploded from a bullet.

“Akahime! Rogue! Come on out if you value the life of your friend,” Ape taunted as he continued to empty magazine after magazine of bullets into the walls around him.

“Mikasa, have you seen a small bottle labeled NZT? I need it,” Eren asked in a harsh whisper.

“You can’t! I can’t let you use that drug, Eren. It’s going to fuck up your system,” she replied, eyeing the steadily disintegrating wall.

“I don’t care about that. Mikasa, where is it?”

“I’m not going to give it to you!”

“We won’t escape this without it!” They both flinched at the sound of Ape’s reloading, but they continued to bicker. “Give me the fucking drug, Mikasa!” The black-haired heroine reached into her suit and finally drew out the small bottle. Eren leaned in to grab it, but before he could, Mikasa chucked it down the left end of the fork. Eren’s mouth hung open in surprise before eyes filled with fury reached Mikasa’s.

“What. The. Fuck?”

“Find Ymir; I’ll fight Ape myself,” Mikasa ordered before she charged from around the corner where they hid.

“Ahahaha!” Ape laughed happily as he watched Mikasa’s charging figure. “So Akahime wants to dance, ey? This should be fun!” He fired towards Mikasa, but she ducked and avoided most of the bullets easily.

“You’ll need more than those flimsy bullets if you hope to go against me,” Mikasa confidently retorted. She ran in a zigzag to approach him and slammed her first into his gut. She met a solid pack of abs, but judging from his tension, she’d say that her punch winded him. Ape grunted and retaliated faster than she could anticipate, grabbing a fair chunk of Mikasa’s hair and yanking it back. He forced her back against the wall and dropped his gun in favor of wrapping his hand around her throat.

Mikasa clawed at the hand squeezing her throat and glared as she watched the man behind the mask. “Aha! Imagine how I’ll be rewarded for killing off three pests at once! Would you like to be my next victim, Akahime? I am a gentleman; it’s important to ask for a lady’s permission first.”

“Well, you’re shit out of luck then,” Eren’s voice suddenly declared. Both sets of eyes turned to look at Eren completely in his Rogue getup. The mask was secured under his chin, the vibrant red smile nearly glowing in the dark. In his hands, he held the Titan’s forgotten gun and had it aimed at Ape’s head. “Release her…now.”

“Boy, you’re in no condition to be making deals,” Ape warned. He squeezed Mikasa’s neck tighter, and she slumped under his hand, unconscious. Then, as if she was a rag doll, he tugged her against him and pulled another knife out, only to press it to her throat. “Now, you put down your little weapon before I slit her throat.” Eren gritted his teeth but felt himself lowering his weapon. “Good boy. Now drop it, and kick it over to me.”

“I’m not a fucking dog,” Eren seethed.

“You’re my bitch,” Ape replied with a chuckle, tinged with madness. Nevertheless, Eren slowly kicked the gun towards Ape and kept his hands up. “A good bitch, apparently. Want a treat?” In a flash, Ape threw his knife into Eren’s right arm. The brunet let out a cry and quickly clutched at his arm.

“Oh, how fun it’ll be to take you down a notch,” Ape whispered; his tone made Eren’s blood run cold. The Titan dumped Mikasa to the ground and walked to Eren. “I’ll be living my fantasy. Get some rest, or you won’t be awake for me to enjoy it, ok?” With a quick jab to his neck, Eren watched the world go black.

 

***

 

“Ughhh,” Mikasa groaned as she came to. “Eren?” She opened her eyes and looked with blurry vision at a horrific scene. Ymir was tied up in chains in a chair across from her, head limp, while Eren was on his knees, tied to a pole behind him. “Eren!” Mikasa quickly tried to scramble to her brother’s help but found that she too was restrained to a wooden post.

“’Kasa?” Eren asked. He looked up, relief flooding his voice, and though she could not see them, she figured his features would be filled with relief as well.

“Mikasa Ackerman and Eren Jaeger,” a new voice with a strong southern accent called out. “Also known as Akahime ‘nd Rogue.” The two in question looked over at the new voice and clenched their teeth. The man talking was standing and slowly making his way over. He had slicked back greyish hair, wore what looked to be an expensive black suit, and a silver pistol dangled precariously from his pocket; he looked nearly identical to Levi’s description... meaning he could only be one person.

“Kenny,” Eren spat out angrily.

“’Ello,” the boss greeted. “I remember you real good with ‘at damn mask you’re wearin’. The infamous Rogue,” Kenny began. He strode up to the brunet and suddenly yanked the mask off his face. “But ‘ere’s the face underneath it. Nothing but a boy. A fucking child.” Agitated, Kenny raised his neatly tailored leg and rammed his foot into Eren’s abdomen.

“Agh!”

“Stop it!” Mikasa cried.

“Quiet, gal, or you’ll be next,” the boss threatened. “’Sides, I want to kick the shit outta this guy. Fucking _ruined_ me,” he enunciated with another kick, this time to the side of Eren’s face. The blow knocked a tooth out. “I was _humiliated. Disgraced. My entire reputation fucking destroyed **‘cause of you**_.” Eren cried out as another blow connected with his face, breaking his nose. A waterfall of blood streamed from his nose, and soon, the metallic taste was on his tongue. His vision was blurry, and he couldn’t see much of anything besides the shine of Kenny’s black shoe each time he kicked his face.

“But I ‘ad to do what I do best: rebuild. So I rebuilt my entire base again and established myself as boss by not taking anyone’s shit. ‘Nd now, once the word spreads that I’ve killed the _great, fucking Rogue,_ my power will be absolute. I’ll take this town once it’s fake-ass leader learns I’m ‘ere, and I killed you.” Kenny slammed his leg into Eren’s gut again, making him keel over in pain. The man chuckled and kicked him again for the fun of it.

“Let him go, you sick monster!” Mikasa screamed, struggling against her restraints. Thick, coarse ropes bound her wrists behind the metal pole her torso was strapped to, but that did not deter her efforts to break free. She couldn’t let that man hurt Eren; she’d never be able to forgive herself.

“I ain’t no monster,” Kenny replied with a wide smile, his southern accent strong. “But I’m takin’ one out.” He brandished a long, serrated knife and knelt over where Eren was tied with his head hung.

“Ymir! Ymir, do something!” Mikasa shouted desperately.

“I can’t do anything! They nailed the fucking chair to the floor,” the other girl growled as she too fought her restraints.

Kenny let out a dark chuckle and roughly grabbed a handful of Eren’s hair before yanking him up; the vigilante let out a soft whimper as his head was jerked violently. Kenny pressed the tip of his knife into Eren’s jugular, feeling his quickening pulse. “I dunno, maybe I am a monster. I jus’ love the sound of my victim’s lil pleas fer mercy; the feelin’ of their rushin’ pulse. Heh, I didn’t get the name Kenny the Ripper for nothin’."

“NO! STOP!” Mikasa screamed as she thrashed in her bindings, but the blood had already begun to stain the knife at her brother’s neck. “EREN!” This wasn’t supposed to be happening. They’d had a plan! Things were supposed to work out…

Then, as if a god had heard her prayers, Kenny paused and glanced at the door. “Well, I’ll be damned. The little fucker showed up.” Mikasa kept her eyes glued to the door and shuddered at hearing a blood-curdling scream for help. The door slowly slid open to reveal a short man with shining grey eyes and blonde hair spotted with red. He must’ve forgotten the contacts before they left that morning.

“Levi, my boy,” Kenny greeted while pressing his knife harder into Eren’s neck. “Ready to come back to where you belong?”

“Shut the fuck up, and step away from Eren,” Levi growled in response. His voice… it seemed so… _primitive…_ It was as if Levi was a different person. Mikasa stared with wide eyes at the other Ackerman and observed him. He was standing casually but tense, ready to fight at a moment’s notice. His attitude was different as well, like Eren’s from when she denied…

_Oh no…_

Mikasa looked down to Levi’s fist, and sure enough, fit snugly in it was the bottle of NZT she had thrown down the tunnel. She looked back to Levi’s face and paled slightly at his expression. He seemed almost excited, nearly bloodthirsty, as he stared at Kenny.  The answer was obvious about what Levi had done.

“Oh, and Kenny,” the older Ackerman began as he pulled something out of his pocket. “Ape wanted me to give you this. He’s pretty damn ugly without his mask on; death suits him better.” He tossed a piece of Ape’s mask onto the ground in front of Kenny. The boss merely chuckled and stood, removing his knife from Eren’s throat.

“Ya son of a bitch. You’ll pay for that one.”

“Make me,” Levi growled, a dark smile twisting his features.

Mikasa’s eyes widened in horror, and a whimper slipped through her chapped lips. She’d… made another monster.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Leave a comment~


	25. Monster + Lucky One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Levi takes back what is his.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope you like this! Although it was a long wait, this fic is back from the dead.

Levi had been angry before. He had been furious too. But never had he been so utterly consumed by pure, blind rage as now.

The little bottle of pills in his grip was starting to crack from how hard he was holding it, the cream plastic warping from the pressure of his white-knuckled hand, but he ignored it. He ignored everything save for the sight of his bleeding boyfriend and insane uncle.

Chuckling darkly, Levi stalked forward, finally throwing the bottle aside. “You know, Kenny, you’ve fucked up a helluva a lot the time I’ve known you, but I didn’t think you’d be fucking stupid enough to touch what belongs to me.”

Eren jerked in surprise at the possessive words, and Mikasa narrowed her eyes. Neither of them had ever heard him speak like that, and quite frankly, it was more than a bit scary. His wild eyes skipped over them before fixating on an unruffled Kenny, who simply brandished his knife once more.

“I think you’re the fucking stupid one, boy, walking onto my territory like this,” the old man replied, spitting at Levi’s feet. The blond growled, and the sound was downright monstrous.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, Levi realized that this wasn’t him, not at all. It had nothing to do with his normal state and everything to do with the adrenaline coursing through his veins faster than the blood.

All courtesy of the nearly empty bottle of pills that had rolled to the side of the room.

 

_Thirty Minutes Before..._

 

Levi sighed angrily, looking around as if watching the same walls over and over again would show him something different. This fucking piece of garbage warehouse was a glorified, over-complicated maze. In fact, the short man had no idea how the incompetent Titan goons didn’t get lost down here. He himself had fucking lost Annie within ten minutes of their arrival, which was pretty damn annoying, but he had decided that he could hold his own despite his wounds. He was worried for her, though; there was only so much a single person could take, especially when they had no way to call for backup.

He came upon a fork in the road, and the first prickles of unease stirred in his stomach. Turning slowly, Levi tried to pinpoint where he could sense someone’s presence.

Nothing moved. The only sound that reached his ears was that of his own harsh breathing.

Levi turned again and hurriedly trekked down the left path. It was darker here as if the lightbulbs had all fizzled out, and no one had bothered to replace them. Eventually, his eyes adjusted to the lack of light, and his steps grew more confident.

Until he stepped on something and crashed to the ground.

“What the ever loving hell?” Levi hissed, frantically whipping around to make sure no one had heard or seen his ungraceful fall. Once again, nothing moved, so he started groping around for whatever had made him trip. His hand closed around a cylindrical object that his panicked mind immediately equated to a grenade. Dropping the thing and backing away, Levi curled into himself, as if that would help anything.

_No, one of those would’ve probably exploded. What the hell is this?_

Cautiously, Levi pulled out his phone and hit the power button. Dim light flooded the black hallway, and he realized the object was a bottle of pills.

_What are those? Don’t tell me one of those Titan fuckers dropped their Viagra in here…_

However, when he went to read the label, he discovered the bottle was not extra "help" for shitty old men, but rather something called NZT. Levi squinted. The first thing he noticed was that at the top, the bottle was stamped with a label that said “BETA,” implying that it was an experimental or relatively new drug. The next thing he saw was the drug’s description.

**Enhancement. Meant to remove limitations and increase production of adrenaline, speed, and physical strength. Dosage not meant to exceed-**

Here the label was torn, like someone had started trying to scratch it off, but had gotten distracted halfway through.

_That’s… why would a Titan leave something like this lying around?_

Before he could put too much thought into it, a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, nearly knocking him over. His phone spiraled out of his grip and hit the wall, screen going dark.

“Oh?” A low voice growled, making him freeze. The hairs on his arms stood on end as the chilling sound crawled down his spine. Ape. It had to be. “What have we here? Some friend of little Rogue and Akahime?”

Levi wrenched himself out of the hand’s grip and stumbled further down the hall, anger and fear starting to simmer in his veins. “What the fuck did you do to them?” _Why were they here in the first place?! Warehouse 3 wasn’t their assignment!_

“Aw, not as much as I wanted to! They’re with ol’ Kenny now, though. So they’re probably… dead,” Ape continued.

Levi snarled, whirling to face the bastard. He could barely see anything of the hulking man, only a large outline and the eerie mask. But he could smell blood.

“He said nothing about you, though… why don’t I have the fun I want, then? You’re a tiny little thing.” the Titan growled contemplatively. Against his wishes, fear curled in Levi’s stomach. He didn’t have much of a chance against this particular Titan, injured and alone as he was.

Or rather, a regular him didn’t. A Levi drugged on something specifically meant to enhance speed and physical strength, however, did.

“Catch me first, motherfucker,” the small blond spat, and then he fucking ran, faster than he ever had in his life. Levi could hear Ape lumbering after him, hissing savagely.  He could feel his aching wound protesting, but he didn’t stop until he burst into a shockingly lit part of the hallway. Once the vigilante paused, he wrenched the lid off the bottle and started collecting saliva in his mouth. He didn’t have much time for this. Pausing, the short fighter looked at the pills. He had no idea what this would even do to him- for all he knew, it wasn’t even the drug matching the description on the bottle. But there was no other choice.

One, two, five- Levi swallowed as many pills as he had time for before his pursuer stormed toward him. He stowed the bottle in his pocket and braced himself.

“What, worn out already?” Ape taunted. His words trailed off and became indistinct suddenly, like they were working their way through murky water to reach a listener.

Levi had no response, because that was when the drugs hit him like a freight train.

It started small, his heart rate picking up marginally. Then adrenaline flooded him, setting his nerves alight, making him jittery. His hearing and vision sharpened, the pain in his chest started to fade, and strength seeped into his tired muscles.

Rage started to boil in his mind, turning to bloodlust the longer it festered. Red clouded the edges of his vision. When Ape swung at him, Levi was ready. He stepped underneath the blow and threw a right hook straight into the ugly mask.

Everything blurred, and Levi lost the ability to focus, yet he could remember everything that happened clearly. He remembered dancing gracefully away from Ape’s heavy blows. He remembered the snap of bones under his hands and feet. And he remembered tearing the Titan’s throat out with his teeth, perched atop him like a wild animal.

The young Ackerman reached for the disgusting, hairy mask that he knew so well. Slowly, he ripped the rubber to shreds, taking a piece with him like a token. Levi stood and strode further down the path, taking the bottle out again. There was always a possibility he’d need more where he was going. Somehow, he could sense Mikasa and Eren that way, almost like some beast who smelled prey.

He would overturn, break, and _swallow_ them.

 

_Present..._

 

Levi didn’t think twice before leaping at his shitty excuse for an uncle. Wrath and the old, childish sadness and loneliness ate him alive, hurting him in a way physical wounds had ceased to.

“Boy…” Kenny spat, slashing at him with his blade. The swing wasn’t nearly as wild and uncoordinated as it looked; with his enhanced senses, he could tell the blade was set to rip through his carotid artery. Along with the enhanced senses came enhanced reflexes, though, so he spun out of the way and kicked at Kenny’s knee. The blow connected, cracking Kenny’s kneecap, and he spat out a textbook of curses.

“What’s wrong, old man?” Levi drawled dangerously, watching his uncle hobble back. “Getting slow in your old age? The arthritis setting in?”

“You won’t be laughing when these arthritic hands wring the life from your little bitch over there,” the gangster threatened. Eren hissed and spat irritably, unable to defend himself.

“Try it, I bloody dare you,” Levi replied, flinging himself at the bastard again. This time, he wasn’t quite quick enough to avoid the knife, and it slashed open his right arm. NZT dulled the pain enough for him to ignore it and snatch the knife from his opponent’s wrinkled grasp. The serrated edge bit into his hand, but that didn’t matter- if the knife was away from the crippled Kenny, it just made him easier to kill.

The silver eyed man kept the weapon in his hand as he thrust his knee into Kenny’s chest, hard enough to crack a few ribs. Kenny retaliated by punching his temple forcefully, making his vision go black, and in the time he was reeling, kicked the younger in the stomach. Swiping blond hair from his face, Levi dove at him again, ignoring something Mikasa was trying to tell him. Ymir tried yelling something as well, but her words got lost in a coughing fit.

Ignoring the girls proved to be a mistake when a bullet punched into his shoulder. Distantly, he heard Ymir calling him a fucking idiot.

“Always carry two weapons, boy. What have I told you?”

Levi ground his teeth together. The pain was taking longer to fade away with every injury he sustained; the drug was wearing off. He had to finish this now. Luckily, a plan was forming in his mind.

He let the bloodstained blade in his hands slip between his fingers until he was barely holding on to it by the tip. Mikasa and Eren made twin exclamations of horror, and the former Titan let out a soft curse.

“Don’t tell me you’re giving up!” Mikasa cried. “Levi, what are-”

Another gunshot echoed in the cramped space, and the girl slumped over with a cry of pain, bullet having pierced through the red flower symbol stitched on her hip. The second Kenny’s attention flickered to her and a now screaming Eren, presumably so he could make some quip about shutting them up, Levi lifted his arm and flung the knife.

It made the most wonderful dull thud when it punched into the old man’s chest.

The vigilante raced forward and grabbed the man by his graying hair. Unceremoniously, he wrenched Kenny’s head to the side and snapped his neck. The man dropped to the grimy floor with a hollow crash.

For a second, it was quiet. The only sound was everyone’s uneven, tense breathing. Then Levi slowly pulled the knife from the dead killer’s chest and drifted over to the college students. He cut through their bonds with care, never saying a word, and when he finished, he simply went to Eren and held him in his arms.

Ymir broke the silence by laughing. She dragged a hand through her matted hair, turning her face to the ceiling. “Holy shit, all of this, and the manic fucker’s finally dead. What the fuck, man, I can’t even believe this.”

“Look at us,” Mikasa groaned, pressing a hand over her wound. “We’re a mess. This was a horrible idea. Theoretically, we shouldn’t be alive right now. I’m very lucky, honestly; he had the opportunity to kill me with that shot.”

Levi opened his mouth to agree, but an intense wave of dizziness cut him off. Eren laughed weakly, saying, “We really are the lucky ones, huh, Levi? Levi?” He trailed off, concern coloring his voice. Levi blinked, trying to point out the bottle of pills. He’d probably taken too much. That could wait, though- they all needed to get out of here before worrying too much about him.

“Go,” the blond started to insist.

Black spots consumed him once again.

 

* * *

 

Carla Jaeger was having a rather slow day in the trauma center, all things considered. They’d only gotten a few patients, all from the same car crash, which was exceedingly rare in such a big hospital. She contemplated taking a nap in the break room. It had been such a late night last night, what with the building collapse. The poor woman just wanted to rest.

“DR. JAEGER!” someone suddenly yelled. Carla sighed. Of course, it wouldn’t last. Such was the life of a trauma surgeon with over ten years of experience; someone would always need her.

“Yes, Dr. Yoon?” Carla replied, turning.

“We have two gunshot victims, one unconscious, and another severely beaten woman! I believe they require your presence for the second gunshot injury.”

Carla frowned and followed her short colleague to the operating rooms. “Domestic dispute gone wrong? Gang fight?”

He shook his head. “We’re not sure. The girls are more stable, though. One of them seems ready to stay awake through all the procedures.”

The surgeon paused at the first occupied room, only to find her daughter rather lazily sprawled over the operating table, tapping out a song on the surface of it. There was a bloody hole above her right hip. A few techs bustled around her, ready to remove the bullet from her body.

“Miss Ackerman-Jaeger, what on earth have you gotten yourself into?” Carla said tightly, exhaling through her teeth. Her daughter. Was on a table. In her OR. Oh, she had some goddamn explaining to do.

The young woman startled, jostling her wound the process. “Oh, fuck, Mom? I didn’t know you were in today… um… please don’t panic. I promise I can explain.”

“Young lady, you had better. And I’m always in; this is my job.”

“MOM!” someone screamed suddenly. Carla turned hurriedly, only to see her son with dried blood crusted under his recently reset nose. He was supporting himself on one leg but looked mostly unharmed.

“Eren! What the hell have you two done?” The woman had to stop herself from shrieking. “Do _not_ tell me you’ve been shot too!”

“No, Mom, it’s not me! It’s my- my boyfriend!” He finished, trailing off miserably. “He didn’t just get shot. I think he overdosed on NZT.”

Carla forgot about Mikasa entirely when she heard that. _NZT? The performance enhancement drug Grisha and I dabbled with a few years back? Where the fuck did he get those pills?_ She stalked into the next room immediately, where a swarm of techs was buzzing around a blond man. This was where she’d been needed, and she’d wasted time.

“Eren. You can’t be in here. I expect the full story later.”

It was time to try saving this man’s life.

 

* * *

 

Some time later, when the man- Levi Ackerman, she had deduced (it was hard to miss the OTHER healing gunshot wound)- was stable, Carla slipped out to talk to her kids. In hushed voices, they told her everything, all the things they’d been enduring. Grisha wandered in and was also told the truth. He’d been just as shocked and horrified to hear the truth as she was, but no less happy to know they had made it out alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Honestly, thank you so much for being as patient as you have been, and for sticking with this little story all this time!

**Author's Note:**

> If that was good, terrible, or just "meh," feedback would be nice. Thanks for reading!


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